Return to Play After Isolated Meniscal Repairs in Athletes: A Systematic Review

How to Improve Meniscal Repair through Biological Augmentation: A Narrative Review

Since the role of the menisci in knee stability, proprioception, and homeostasis has been well established, significant efforts have been made to repair meniscal tears, resulting in excellent clinical outcomes and a reduction in the progression of knee osteoarthritis (OA). However, varying failure rates have been reported, raising questions regarding the healing potential in cases of complex injuries, poorly vascularized and degenerated areas, and generally in the presence of unfavorable biological characteristics. Therefore, over the last few decades, different strategies have been described to increase the chances of meniscal healing. Biological augmentation of meniscal repair through various techniques represents a safe and effective strategy with proven clinical benefits. This approach could reduce the failure rate and expand the indications for meniscal repair. In the present study, we thoroughly reviewed the available evidence on meniscal repair surgery and summarized the main techniques that can be employed to enhance the biological healing potential of a meniscal lesion. Our aim was to provide an overview of the state of the art on meniscal repair and suggest the best techniques to reduce their failure rate.

Continuous suture all-inside meniscal repair technique produces excellent functional outcomes and return to play rates with a low rate of failure

BACKGROUND

The all-inside technique is now the most established treatment for meniscal repair, this usually involves a suture-based repair utilising interrupted sutures. A similar technique using continuous sutures can also be used; however there are no studies in the literature appraising this technique. This study aims to review outcomes for patients undergoing meniscal repair using a continuous suture all-inside technique.

METHODS

We reviewed patients undergoing meniscal repair using a continuous suture all-inside technique over a 5 year period. We recorded demographic details, injury type, surgical procedure, incidence of reoperation, functional outcomes (Tegner-Lysholm and International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) score) return to sport and failure of repair.

RESULTS

Data were collected for 37 patients. Mean age was 25.8 years, 81%, were male, median time to theatre was 169 days, mean follow-up time was 2.9 years. Concurrent ACL ruptures were present in 57%, all underwent ACL reconstruction in the same sitting. The mean Tegner-Lysholm score was 89. Mean IKDC score was 90.2. 78% were able to return to sport. Overall failure rate was 10.81%. Increasing age was associated with a decreased IKDC score (p = 0.02). Tegner-Lysholm score was significantly greater in patients with concurrent ACL injuries (p = 0.03) and patients with lateral meniscal tears (p = 0.04).

CONCLUSION

In the first study to review outcomes following continuous all-inside suture-based meniscal repair we demonstrate excellent clinical outcomes with IKDC, Tegner-Lysholm, return to play and failure rates comparable to other commonly used techniques. We conclude that this is an acceptable and cost-effective technique.

Failure rate, return-to-sports and magnetic resonance imaging after meniscal repair: 119 patients with 7 years mean follow up

BACKGROUND

One of the most important factors to consider in relation to meniscal repair is the high failure rate reported in the existing literature.

AIM

To evaluate failure rates, return to sports (RTS) rate, clinical outcomes and magnetic resonance image (MRI) evaluation after meniscus suture repair for longitudinal tears at a minimum 2-year-follow-up.

METHODS

We conducted a retrospective review of meniscal repairs between January 2004 and December 2018. All patients treated for longitudinal tears associated or not with an anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACL-R) were included. Meniscal ramp lesions, radial and root tears, associated with multiligament injuries, tibial fracture and meniscal allograft transplants were excluded. Surgical details and failure rate, defined as symptomatic patients who underwent a revision surgery, were analyzed. As isolated bucket handle tears (BHTs) were usually associated with higher failure rates, we compared BHTs and not BHTs associated or not with an ACL-R. Since 2014, the inside-out technique using cannulas and suture needles with 2-0 Tycron began to predominate. In addition, the number of stitches per repair was increased. In view of differences in surgical technique, we compared two different cohorts: before and after 2014. We recorded the RTS according to the level achieved and the time to RTS. Lysholm and IKDC scores were recorded. Patients were studied with x-rays and MRI as standard postoperative control.

RESULTS

One hundred and nineteen patients were included with a mean follow up of 7 years (SD: 4.08). Overall failure rate was 20.3% at a mean 20.1 mo. No statistically significant differences were found when comparing failure for medial and lateral meniscal repair (22.7% and 15.3%, P = 0.36), BHTs and not BHTs (26% and 17.6%, P = 0.27), isolated or associated with an ACL-R (22.9% and 18%, P = 0.47), or when comparing only BHTs associated with an ACL-R (23% and 27.7%, P = 0.9) or not. When comparing cohorts before and after 2014, we found a significant decrease in the overall failure rate from 26% to 11% (P < 0.03). Isolated lesions presented a decrease from 28% to 6.6% (P = 0.02), BHTs from 34% to 8% (P = 0.09) and those associated with an ACL-R from 25% to 10% (P = 0.09). Mean RTS time was 6.5 mo in isolated lesions and 8.64 mo when associated with an ACL-R. Overall, 56% of patients returned to the same sport activity level. Mean pre and postoperative Lysholm scores were 64 and 85 (P = 0.02), and IKDC 58 and 70 (P = 0.03). Out of 84 asymptomatic patients evaluated with MRI, 39% were classified as "not healed" and 61% as "healed".

CONCLUSION

Even though the overall failure rate of our series was 20.3%, we found a statistically significant decrease from 26% to 11%, not only for isolated lesions, but also for BHT's and those associated with an ACL-R when comparing our series in two different cohorts, most probably due to improvements in surgical technique.

Clinical Outcome of Arthroscopic Repair for Isolated Meniscus Tear in Athletes

Increased knowledge of the long-term destructive consequences of meniscectomy has created a shift towards operative repair of isolated meniscus lesions. However, in the literature the results of isolated meniscal repair in athletes currently remain underreported. Our objective was to investigate the clinical and functional outcomes as well as survival and return to sport in patients who underwent meniscal repair after isolated meniscal tear, with a focus on athletes (both professional and recreational) in the study population. This retrospective study included 52 athletes who underwent knee surgery for isolated meniscal tear between 2014 and 2020. Patients with concomitant ligamentous and/or chondral injury were not included in this study. The mean age of the patients was 25.5 years (ranging from 12 to 57 years). The mean follow-up period of all patients was 33.3 months (ranging 10 to 80 months). The mean purpose of the study was to report the return to sport. The International Knee Documentation Committee rating (IKDC), Lysholm score, the Knee Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) and Tegner activity level were determined at the follow-up. Failure was defined as re-operation with meniscectomy or revision meniscal repair. In total, 44 out of 52 patients (85%) returned to their previous sports activities. At follow-up, the mean Lysholm score was 90, representing a good to excellent result. Assessment of KOOS (mean value 88.8) and IKDC (mean value 89) scores also showed good to excellent results. A mean level of Tegner scale was 6.2, indicating a relatively high level of sports participation. Failure was encountered in 8 out of 52 knees (15%). Therefore, isolated meniscal repair resulted in good to excellent knee function and most athletes can return to their previous level of sports participation.

In elite athletes with meniscal injuries, always repair the lateral, think about the medial! A systematic review

PURPOSE

This study aimed to evaluate and compare the time required to return to sports (RTS) after surgery, the rate of revision surgery and the time required for RTS after revision surgery in elite athletes undergoing meniscal repair or partial meniscectomy, particularly analysing the difference between medial and lateral menisci. It was hypothesised that both procedures would entail similar, high rates of RTS, with the lateral meniscus exhibiting higher potential healing postprocedure compared to the medial meniscus.

METHODS

A systematic review was conducted based on the PRISMA guidelines. Quality assessment of the systematic review was performed using the AMSTAR-2 checklist. The following search terms were browsed in the title, abstract and keyword fields: 'meniscus' or 'meniscal' AND 'tear,' 'injury' or 'lesion' AND 'professional,' 'elite' or 'high-level' AND 'athletes,' 'sports,' 'sportsman,' 'soccer,' 'basketball,' 'football' or 'handball'. The resulting measures extracted from the studies were the rate of RTS, level of RTS, complications, revision surgery and subsequent RTS, Tegner, International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS).

RESULTS

In this study, the cohort consisted of 421 patients [415 (98.6%) men and 6 (1.4%) women] with a mean age of 23.0 ± 3.0 years. All patients were elite athletes in wrestling, baseball, soccer, rugby or handball. While 327 (77.7%) patients received partial meniscectomy at a mean age of 23.3 ± 2.6 years, 94 (22.3%) patients received meniscal repair at a mean age of 22.1 ± 4.0 years. After partial meniscectomy, 277 patients (84.7%) returned to their competitive sports activity and 256 (78.3%) returned to their pre-injury activity levels. A total of 12 (3.7%) patients required revision surgery because of persistent pain [5 (1.5%) patients], chondrolysis [2 (0.7%) patients] or both chondrolysis and lateral instability [5 (1.5%) patients]. Ten (83.3%) of the twelve patients had involvement of the lateral meniscus, whereas the location of injury was not specified in the remaining two patients. After revision surgery, all patients (100%) resumed sports activity. However, after meniscal repair, 80 (85.1%) athletes returned to their competitive sports activity and 71 (75.5%) returned to their pre-injury activity levels. A total of 16 (17.0%) patients required partial meniscectomy in cases of persistent pain or suture failure. Of these, 4 (25%) patients involved lateral and medial menisci each and 8 (50%) patients were not specified. After revision surgery, more than 80.0% of the patients (13) resumed sports activity.

CONCLUSIONS

In elite athletes with isolated meniscal injury, partial meniscectomy and meniscal suture exhibited similar rates of RTS and return to pre-injury levels. Nonetheless, athletes required more time for RTS after meniscal repair and exhibited an increased rate of revision surgery associated with a reduced rate of RTS after the subsequent surgery. For lateral meniscus tears, meniscectomy was associated with a high rate of revision surgery and risk of chondrolysis, whereas partial medial meniscectomy allowed for rapid RTS but with the potential risk of developing knee osteoarthritis over the years. The findings of this systematic review suggested a suture on the lateral meniscus in elite athletes because of the high healing potential after the procedure, the reduced risk of developing chondrolysis and the high risk of revision surgery after partial meniscectomy. Furthermore, it is important to evaluate several factors while dealing with the medial meniscus. If rapid RTS activity is needed, a hyperselective meniscectomy is recommended; otherwise, a meniscal suture is recommended to avoid accelerated osteoarthritis.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level IV.

STUDY REGISTRATION

PROSPERO-CRD42022351979 ( https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=351979 ).

Horizontal Cleavage Meniscus Tear Repaired Using a Cerclage Technique

Background:

Horizontal meniscal cleavage tears often occur in older individuals and have a degenerative component. Commonly, these are managed with partial meniscectomy. However, this results in significantly decreased contact area and increased peek contact forces. Arthroscopic repair has shown comparable results with repairs of other tear types.

Indications:

Cerclage repair is performed for a horizontal cleavage tear in individuals without significant arthritis and in whom partial meniscectomy would remove an unacceptably large portion of meniscal tissue.

Technique Description:

Using standard arthroscopy portals, a self-retrieving suture passing device is used to pass a #0 high-strength suture through the periphery of the meniscus. Arthroscopic knots are tied on the superior surface of the meniscus and pushed as far posteriorly as possible. A small 1-cm incision is made just through skin on the proximal, posteromedial border of the tibia. Through this a spinal needle is placed percutaneously to pass a Chia into the joint just posterior to the knot. A curved spinal needle from an outside-in meniscal repair kit may be used as this provides a better trajectory to tears closer to the root attachment. The Chia and suture limbs are retrieved out the front of the knee, and then the suture tails are shuttled out the back of the knee. This is repeated until the repair is complete. The suture limbs are then cut below skin.

Results:

After arthroscopic all-inside repair of horizontal cleavage tears, patients do well. Outcomes are similar to repairs of other meniscal tear types. In all, 80% of patients are satisfied with their results, and there is an 11% to 12% failure rate which is comparable to other types of tear repairs.

Discussion:

All-inside cerclage repair should be considered for individuals sustaining a horizontal cleavage tear. This preserves meniscal tissue compared to partial meniscectomy and yields good healing rates and outcomes. The author(s) attests that consent has been obtained from any patient(s) appearing in this publication. If the individual may be identifiable, the author(s) has included a statement of release or other written form of approval from the patient(s) with this submission for publication.

Blood flow restriction added to usual care exercise in patients with early weight bearing restrictions after cartilage or meniscus repair in the knee joint: a feasibility study

PURPOSE

Blood flow restriction - low load strength training (BFR-LLST) is theoretically superior to traditional heavy strength training when rehabilitating patients who cannot heavily load tissues following surgery. The main purpose of this study was to examine the feasibility of BFR-LLST added to usual care exercise early after cartilage or meniscus repair in the knee joint.

METHODS

We included 42 patients with cartilage (n = 21) or meniscus repair (n = 21) of the knee joint. They attended 9 weeks of BFR-LLST added to a usual care exercise program at an outpatient rehabilitation center. Outcome measures were assessed at different time points from four (baseline) to 26 weeks postoperatively and included adherence, harms, knee joint and thigh pain, perceived exertion, thigh circumference (muscle size proxy), isometric knee-extension strength, self-reported disability and quality of life.

RESULTS

On average, patients with cartilage or meniscus repair completed > 84% of the total BFR-LLST supervised sessions. Thirty-eight patients reported 146 adverse events of which none were considered serious. No decrease in thigh circumference or exacerbation of knee joint or quadriceps muscle pain of the operated leg was found in either group during the intervention period.

CONCLUSIONS

BFR-LLST added to usual care exercise initiated early after cartilage or meniscus repair seems feasible and may prevent disuse thigh muscle atrophy during a period of weight bearing restrictions. Harms were reported, but no serious adverse events were found. Our findings are promising but need replication using a RCT-design.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

NCT03371901 , preprint (open access):  https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2022.03.31.22272398v1.

Posterior knee arthroscopy facilitates the safe and effective all-inside repair of locked bucket-handle medial meniscal tear using a suture hook technique

PURPOSE

This study reported the outcomes of locked bucket-handle medial meniscal tear (BHMMT) repairs using an arthroscopic posterior approach during anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction.

METHODS

Between 2011 and 2014, 48 patients with BHMMTs and ACL tears who met the eligibility criteria were enrolled in the present study. BHMMTs were assessed using a posterolateral transseptal portal and repaired using a posteromedial portal. Transportal ACL reconstruction was performed using hamstrings autograft. Patients were assessed based on their IKDC and Lysholm scores and Tegner activity level. Meniscal healing was clinically evaluated based on the absence of swelling, joint line tenderness, locking, and catching; McMurray test results; and the need for meniscectomy.

RESULTS

According to follow-up assessments, the average IKDC and Lysholm scores improved significantly after 3-5 years (P < 0.001) CONCLUSION:  Excellent clinical outcomes were obtained when locked BHMMTs were repaired using an all-inside suture technique that employed posteromedial and posterolateral transseptal portals.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

IV.