Just got in my new 2005 Giant Cypress SX. Beautiful bike. All I can do is look at it sparkling in my living room. Suffered a torn meniscus day before it arrived. Knee is ckicking somewhat and getting a follow up mri in a week. Anyone have reccovery experiences from this injury**********

Yeah, they are good... it has been well over 15 years now and I am doing fine... can't even tell. Was back riding hard in under six months. Insist on a sports medicine Therapist post surgery... otherwise the lame exercises they would have you do are no where near what a decent cyclist can handle. (exercise bikes at about 60rpm... I would spin up to 90+ when they weren't looking... they finally understood and got more agressive.)

First week was rough, it hurt... the next couple of weeks get better and better. It really is up to you to push the Physical Therapy though.

Good luck, hang in there.

Wow, what a piece of bad luck -- like Christmas morning but you're too sick with pneumonia to enjoy it. I just had mine fixed back in October. You can expect the first couple of days to be painful (take the pain meds they give you, keep it elevated and ice it). After the first week things are pretty good. Start slowly but consistently on the simple exercises they give you and then work up tougher stuff. Stairs may feel a weird the first few days you use the injured knee, but I found the unsteady feeling disappeared fairly quickly.

If you were really athletic before the injury, then sports therapy is worth it, otherwise regular exercise might be enough. I just hit the gym a couple of days a week and slowly worked up through exercises that were comfortable until I had the strength and mobility back.

I started my long commute in February and it has really helped increase the strength and mobility of my leg. I can feel it a little bit if I really push hard (for me), but the recovery seems pretty complete. Six months after the surgery the only way you can tell is to carefully to compare the two knees -- the operated knee has an area of slight swelling.

What is the miniscus? I hurt my leg two weeks ago, its healing but its definately messed up. Possible ACL injury. But I'm walking decently now and still wearing a brace for support.

The meniscus are two pieces of tissue shaped kind of like a "C" that are in your knee joint. It provides the cushioning where your femur and tibia come together in your knee. I didn't know that little tidbit until last fall when the orthopedist showed me on the MRI and in these nifty models.

Genec has it right- its all about doing the correct work through recovery. Make sure you have a good sports med PT. If your insurance wont pay for it- do it out of your pocket. The time you spend in PT will make a difference for the rest of your life. Dont over do it on your recovery- but dont lollygag either - thats where a good PT will guide you. My wife is a PT- and we know of many freinds that have had similar injuries and surgeries (including me). The biggest difference is their post op approach. Those that didnt commit to PT ended up with either a loss of range of motion, or sometimes a second surgery.

Good luck. You will have the bike for a long time- you will get in many many great rides- think about that as the PT tells you do one more bend.....

I had a torn meniscus with a bit of other tissue damage in there as well. Doc was not so good, and didn't mention therapy at all. Still, I've recovered well, mostly with karate and biking. Stretching and building the muscles back is impt. If I go without, my knee will pain me.

Hang in there. Recovery is no joy, but time passes. Biking is one of the best things for rehab - you've got something to look forward to.

Been there, done that, years ago. Probably one of the more minor knee surgeries around. I don't remember any PT or anything special, I'm sure I took a week or two off work (surveyor at the time lotta walking/kneeling) Doesn't give me any trouble nowdays skiing, biking, walking. I don't even remember which knee it was and the tiny scars cannot been seen anymore. I do remember before it got fixed hurting pretty good and my knee locking up as the tear got caught in the joint.

How bad does your meniscus have to be before getting treatment?

I had what I considered to be scar tissue on my meniscus causing my knee to lock as well as click when straightening it.

The problem was that it only happened intermittently when doing physical exercise. I've been to a couple of Doctors. One said come back later if it gets worse, and the other one told me to take up cycling (I used to be a runner).

To me it seems like they are trying to screen me out to save costs.

I tore my ACL back in 2000. The injury compressed my meniscus, which the doctor kind of shaved off, like you might scrape off the peanut butter protuding from a sandwhich that got smushed. The problem with my meniscus is that it is now too thin, and at the time, there was nothing that could be done about that. I've heard they are experimenting with a synthetic meniscus, but haven't found any info.

Biking has been a lot easier on my knees than running. The meniscus is an impact sponge. There is little impact stress on the knee while biking due to the continuous stroke. There have been times after too much soccer where I can barely walk, but I can still ride.

Do whatever therapy your doc prescribes. Mine started me off pedaling backward on the bike and walking backward on a treadmill.

freerangemike, I am doing what the doc prescribed, and it has helped, but I still get the clicking. This has been around for 4 years and I just wish I could get an mri because it is frustrating to think it may show something. Even if it shows nothing then I'll be satisfied.

Thanks everyone. Just gonna have to wait for my MRI results. All of your experiences look encouraging though. Just wish I could ride now.

Kgreen, how did you tear your meniscus?

I tore mine about 4 years ago from repeated skating injuries(read-jumping off of buildings). Mine didn't click. I actually felt it "pop" when it tore, but amazingly enough, I kept skating for 2 more hours. I didn't realize the severity of the injury until I squatted down later that day. When I started to rise, my knee locked up when the cartilage flipped over.Ouch.
Apparently, there are two types of surgery for this. One involves cutting out the damaged meniscal cartilage, the other involves repairing the meniscal cartilage. I knew a girl that had her meniscus removed at the same time I had mine repaired. She was walking in like 2 days. I was walking again in 2 months. But, 4 years after surgery, it seems to be ok. I actually trust it more than my other knee, which bore much of the same abuse.I take a glucosamine supplement(when I remember), which supposedly helps cushion and lubricate the joint, which seems to help.
This injury is actually what got me into cycling. After I started walking again, I stole some old single speed coaster townie bike from a friend and started riding through the country in the middle of the night. I recently started skating again, though I am much more mindful of what I do to my knees.
Good luck on your recovery.


Peace

Jon

kgreen, I know exactly what you are going through. I just purchased a new 2005 Trek Pilot 5.2 and tore my meniscus playing tennis. I've only got five miles on my new bike. Last Wednesday, I had surgery on my left knee to repair the meniscus and reconstruct my ACL. I'm hoping I can ride my bike on a trainer in a couple of weeks.

I tore it with a simple twisting of my leg as I was turning quickly while walking on an uneven surface. Going to Doc again this week. Feels preety good when walking straight, but sitting and trying to crouch is painful. Hope I can get back into things after a couple of weeks after arthroscopic surgery.

Is "clicking" always bad? My knee clicks, but there is not really any pain (other than what can be expected from too many miles of running and riding).

The therapy really helps - I had a torn meniscus two years ago. I still wear a knee brace for most sports - basketball, volleyball, etc. The beauty of it is, cycling is one of the motions that does not bother it in the least. There is little lateral movement, and it does not hurt at all. Part of therapy was even to get on a bike...doctor prescribed cycling!

Good Luck,

I had knee surgery about 9 years ago (I was 14), and didn't go with therapy. I really wish I did, tho... my knee doesn't straighten out like it's supposed to, and I still have sporatic problems to this day.

the pain went away in about a week and a half, but it took me 5 weeks to completely walk again.

That's basically my situation too. It used to lock but now I only get clicking when straighting the leg from a relaxed position i.e. sitting or lying down. My guess is that you should see a doc about it. Mine prescribed cycling and doing squats with weights(make sure your feet are parallel), and it has gotten marginally better over the last 6 months.

I had surgery for a torn meniscus in the summer of '03. The doctor said recovery can be as short as 6 weeks but it ended up being closer to 6 months before I was completely pain free. I'm glad to say that I haven't experienced any real pain at all since my recovery ended. I will say that I do remember reading that having your meniscus repaired increases the likelihood that you'll get arthritis in the knee as you get older.