Torn Meniscus, playing with brace, thoughts or suggestions?

[arturohernandez]

Hi Everyone,

Well father time has finally taken his toll on me. My left leg has been weaker for years. It tends to cramp much more easily and my IT band was always super stiff. During the lockdown, I played with my daughter three days a week for four months. Then in September of last year I went on a run. I started to immediately cramp. I could not even walk without cramping. I took a rest but decided to play a tournament in early October. The first match was fine but the second was painful. I had to retire...

Over the last few months it was just not getting better. So I went to the orthopedist. And, yes, a torn meniscus. She basically recommended that I use a brace to stabilize the knee. She thinks that getting surgery will yield the same result anyway and then I will probably lose some meniscus. So just put it off as long as possible and maybe better treatments will come around.

She says that it should be much better if I play with this brace. She even said that I could push it to a pretty high level as long as I make sure to back off when it hurts.

So, has anyone played with one of these braces? How did it go?

Should I think about joining a club that has clay courts? Would this help?

I love tennis so I figure since I helped my kids, maybe I can help some juniors out.

It might be time to pass the torch...

Any thoughts?

[johnyandell]

Yow!! No experience like that myself. Anyone else? Clay courts yes!

[stotty]

I have always preferred a moving surfaces oppose to one where you stick as it's so much easier on the joints, plus it's lovely to skate.

I have an arthritic left knee caused by years of using lateral pinpoint. My left leg takes all the load when driving up while to right leg is just a stabiliser. Some days are worse than others but unfortunately I need another 8 years out my knee before I can call it a day.

God knows what Novak's joints will be like when he's 60. Sliding on hard courts is going to have an accumulative effect.

[don_budge]

Hi Everyone,

Well father time has finally taken his toll on me. My left leg has been weaker for years. It tends to cramp much more easily and my IT band was always super stiff. During the lockdown, I played with my daughter three days a week for four months. Then in September of last year I went on a run. I started to immediately cramp. I could not even walk without cramping. I took a rest but decided to play a tournament in early October. The first match was fine but the second was painful. I had to retire...

Over the last few months it was just not getting better. So I went to the orthopedist. And, yes, a torn meniscus. She basically recommended that I use a brace to stabilize the knee. She thinks that getting surgery will yield the same result anyway and then I will probably lose some meniscus. So just put it off as long as possible and maybe better treatments will come around.

She says that it should be much better if I play with this brace. She even said that I could push it to a pretty high level as long as I make sure to back off when it hurts.

So, has anyone played with one of these braces? How did it go?

Should I think about joining a club that has clay courts? Would this help?

I love tennis so I figure since I helped my kids, maybe I can help some juniors out.

It might be time to pass the torch...

Any thoughts?

That isn't good. Depending on the extent of the injury...I might opt for the surgery. What they do with the knee these days is way better than what they used to do. I wish you would have asked me this when you were twenty five. It was right around twenty-five that I consciously started to play predominately on clay for that very reason. Clay is definitely the way to go. Hard courts are so destructive to the body. I think any tennis player that plays for a lifetime is going to experience knee difficulty. So knowing that...an ounce of prevention is going to be worth a pound of cure. You may have read that I have written a bit on my own conditioning and exercise program. My training is total body fitness and I have done more work with my legs in the last two years than I ever did and it is paying off. Now I am actually running and jumping rope.

The running I do is one hundred step runs followed by 50 step walks. This way you can keep you gait pretty straight and universal without faltering over a distance run. The brace is an excellent idea as well. But since you did not do the "prehabilitation", which is what I call the work to specifically prevent injury, you should really focus on intense rehabilitation now. You just might be able to overcome some of the damage by strengthening the surrounding areas to support the injury.

I wish you the best of luck...as usual.

[rthodges]

Hi Everyone,

Well father time has finally taken his toll on me. My left leg has been weaker for years. It tends to cramp much more easily and my IT band was always super stiff. During the lockdown, I played with my daughter three days a week for four months. Then in September of last year I went on a run. I started to immediately cramp. I could not even walk without cramping. I took a rest but decided to play a tournament in early October. The first match was fine but the second was painful. I had to retire...

Over the last few months it was just not getting better. So I went to the orthopedist. And, yes, a torn meniscus. She basically recommended that I use a brace to stabilize the knee. She thinks that getting surgery will yield the same result anyway and then I will probably lose some meniscus. So just put it off as long as possible and maybe better treatments will come around.

She says that it should be much better if I play with this brace. She even said that I could push it to a pretty high level as long as I make sure to back off when it hurts.

So, has anyone played with one of these braces? How did it go?

Should I think about joining a club that has clay courts? Would this help?

I love tennis so I figure since I helped my kids, maybe I can help some juniors out.

It might be time to pass the torch...

Any thoughts?

Depending on the tear you have several options. Do you know the grade and type of the tear? Regarding surgery: the main options currently available are meniscectomy, partial meniscectomy, arthroscopic repair, and transplant. It sounds like your doctor is recommending partial meniscectomy, the removal of part of your meniscus. Generally, meniscectomy patients have higher occurrences of osteoarthritis due to the removal of the meniscus resulting in increased wear and tear on the joint. A prime example of this is Dwayne Wade, who underwent meniscectomy before arthroscopic repair was widely available. There are also meniscus transplants available if the tear is unable to be repaired.

While I’m not familiar with the specific details of your case, I would strongly recommend you to ask your doctor about undergoing arthroscopic repair surgery, as the tear in your meniscus will be sutured back together to heal instead of being removed. Also, clay courts should be avoided entirely. The instability and sliding will cause you to tear your meniscus even more. The brace can help depending on the grade of the tear. If it’s a grade 1 or 2, then surgery may not be required.

[don_budge]

Depending on the tear you have several options. Do you know the grade and type of the tear? Regarding surgery: the main options currently available are meniscectomy, partial meniscectomy, arthroscopic repair, and transplant. It sounds like your doctor is recommending partial meniscectomy, the removal of part of your meniscus. Generally, meniscectomy patients have higher occurrences of osteoarthritis due to the removal of the meniscus resulting in increased wear and tear on the joint. A prime example of this is Dwayne Wade, who underwent meniscectomy before arthroscopic repair was widely available. There are also meniscus transplants available if the tear is unable to be repaired.

While I’m not familiar with the specific details of your case, I would strongly recommend you to ask your doctor about undergoing arthroscopic repair surgery, as the tear in your meniscus will be sutured back together to heal instead of being removed. Also, clay courts should be avoided entirely. The instability and sliding will cause you to tear your meniscus even more. The brace can help depending on the grade of the tear. If it’s a grade 1 or 2, then surgery may not be required.

Interesting point regards the clay court and thanks for your expert opinion. Question...did I save wear and tear on my knees by playing almost exclusively on clay from the age of 25 to 40? I always thought that clay was easier on my body than other surfaces such as hard, carpet, etc.

[arturohernandez]

Depending on the tear you have several options. Do you know the grade and type of the tear? Regarding surgery: the main options currently available are meniscectomy, partial meniscectomy, arthroscopic repair, and transplant. It sounds like your doctor is recommending partial meniscectomy, the removal of part of your meniscus. Generally, meniscectomy patients have higher occurrences of osteoarthritis due to the removal of the meniscus resulting in increased wear and tear on the joint. A prime example of this is Dwayne Wade, who underwent meniscectomy before arthroscopic repair was widely available. There are also meniscus transplants available if the tear is unable to be repaired.

While I’m not familiar with the specific details of your case, I would strongly recommend you to ask your doctor about undergoing arthroscopic repair surgery, as the tear in your meniscus will be sutured back together to heal instead of being removed. Also, clay courts should be avoided entirely. The instability and sliding will cause you to tear your meniscus even more. The brace can help depending on the grade of the tear. If it’s a grade 1 or 2, then surgery may not be required.

Thanks for the advice. My doctor wants me to avoid surgery. The tear is on the outside of the knee and she thinks it will be hard to repair because it might not get good blood flow. Her advice was to get a brace that will help stabilize the knee. She would recommend this after meniscectomy anyway so why do the surgery just to wear a brace. She recommends wearing the brace which is the expensive kind that adds stability by strapping above and below the knee. Then she thinks I can get back to pretty intense exercise even tennis. The brace will basically protect the knee.

The main idea is to buy time so that I can have as much meniscus as possible for as long as possible. I really liked that she was not knife happy.

Biotechnology is moving quickly and my guess is that when I finally do get surgery or treatment, there will be options available to me that are not available now.

I have been running in the pool which really helps. I will probably start swimming for conditioning.

I have a job I love, I am in good health and my goal is to be able to walk in 30 years. I am 53.

I may not be able to play as intensely as before but I really enjoy working with my daughter. I probably will find a junior or two that I can guide if they would like me to do so.

As a very famous song in Spanish was titled Todo Cambia, Everything changes.

Right now there are people with no power, busted pipes and no way to cook their food just a few miles from where I live in the outskirts of balmy Houston.

Things could be a lot worse.

Thanks once again for the advice!

[rthodges]

Interesting point regards the clay court and thanks for your expert opinion. Question...did I save wear and tear on my knees by playing almost exclusively on clay from the age of 25 to 40? I always thought that clay was easier on my body than other surfaces such as hard, carpet, etc.

You did, clay is easier on the body provided you have a stable foundation.

[rthodges]

Thanks for the advice. My doctor wants me to avoid surgery. The tear is on the outside of the knee and she thinks it will be hard to repair because it might not get good blood flow. Her advice was to get a brace that will help stabilize the knee. She would recommend this after meniscectomy anyway so why do the surgery just to wear a brace. She recommends wearing the brace which is the expensive kind that adds stability by strapping above and below the knee. Then she thinks I can get back to pretty intense exercise even tennis. The brace will basically protect the knee.

The main idea is to buy time so that I can have as much meniscus as possible for as long as possible. I really liked that she was not knife happy.

Biotechnology is moving quickly and my guess is that when I finally do get surgery or treatment, there will be options available to me that are not available now.

I have been running in the pool which really helps. I will probably start swimming for conditioning.

I have a job I love, I am in good health and my goal is to be able to walk in 30 years. I am 53.

I may not be able to play as intensely as before but I really enjoy working with my daughter. I probably will find a junior or two that I can guide if they would like me to do so.

As a very famous song in Spanish was titled Todo Cambia, Everything changes.

Right now there are people with no power, busted pipes and no way to cook their food just a few miles from where I live in the outskirts of balmy Houston.

Things could be a lot worse.

Thanks once again for the advice!

You’re quite welcome, I just wanted to let you know there are a lot of options out there that have more preferable outcomes than a partial meniscectomy for continued athletic activities. Things could definitely be worse, and as far as knee injuries go a grade 1 or 2 meniscus tear, which it sounds like you have if surgery isn’t required, is definitely preferable to an ACL or MCL injury!

Swimming and water aerobics are great low impact activities. Riding on an exercise bike is also recommended as it’s also low impact and can increase blood flow to the knee. There are also percussive and shockwave therapies that can be used to increase blood flow as well. Good luck and I hope it heals quickly!

[don_budge]

Right now there are people with no power, busted pipes and no way to cook their food just a few miles from where I live in the outskirts of balmy Houston.

Things could be a lot worse.

arturohernandez...Sorry to hear about both your knee and the plight of Texans. I pray that conditions improve soon. Hang in there. Be safe.

[arturohernandez]

arturohernandez...Sorry to hear about both your knee and the plight of Texans. I pray that conditions improve soon. Hang in there. Be safe.

It was warm and balmy two weeks ago and will be 70 degrees today. It literally depends on which way the wind blows in SE Texas. Right now the wind is in our favor.

Thanks again for the well wishes!

[arturohernandez]

You’re quite welcome, I just wanted to let you know there are a lot of options out there that have more preferable outcomes than a partial meniscectomy for continued athletic activities. Things could definitely be worse, and as far as knee injuries go a grade 1 or 2 meniscus tear, which it sounds like you have if surgery isn’t required, is definitely preferable to an ACL or MCL injury!

Swimming and water aerobics are great low impact activities. Riding on an exercise bike is also recommended as it’s also low impact and can increase blood flow to the knee. There are also percussive and shockwave therapies that can be used to increase blood flow as well. Good luck and I hope it heals quickly!

I never really liked bikes but will try one to see if that might help. It turns out there are a lot of things I used to not like that I am starting to like since they make my body feel better.

Thanks again!

[don_budge]

arturohernandez...Sorry to hear about both your knee and the plight of Texans. I pray that conditions improve soon. Hang in there. Be safe.

Golf? It might not be too late.

[arturohernandez]

Golf? It might not be too late.

Too expensive and time consuming for my taste. I will take my chances at swimming, walking and tennis with a brace.

But you never know. I might end up playing Golf and watching the Masters on TV.

[tenniscoach1]

I have a new handle replacing the old hockeyscout one - I'd highly suggest you initiate with a six week GPP program assessment program with a certified trainer that deals with these types of injuries for living - #1 get a certified movement scientist to review your video, see you in person, perform a movement assessment and then have him communicate with an athletic trainer who will be able to re-initiate the nerve ending and stimulate proper neurological response. As I always say, the more you spend/invest now the less you will piss down the toilet later in surgery/recovery/lost time/mobility and life issues. You get what you pay for in this business.

I personally design machines so athletes can perform at a peak level and not break down. Me and my two assistants handcraft everything and provide certification programs so coaches know how to properly use them - I put the photos of three orders I am working on this week - (1) mobile belt squat, (2) plyometric swing and (3) glute/ham reverse machine. I design these custom made for professional athletes - they are priced at $13000 - $7000 - $3900. Our prices are high as these are handcrafted from beginning to end, top end materials, perfect welds by hand and designed to withstand the power/force generated by professional athletes. We provide a video log showing each step of the process. We are backup up ten weeks now, but the wait on our equipment is very well worth it.

I will post Monday when this batch is painted and completed ... they look like shit now but once the paint and the final touches go on they will be fit for a prince. Which is where this batch is going - to a soccer dad in Dubai who is coming on his plane to pick them up on Monday LOL - he requested they look "GOLDEN" lol ... quite the customer!