What is the role of the meniscus?

Much like the rotator cuff, you've likely heard the term "meniscus" before and know it's probably located in your knee but don't know much else outside of that. 

Well, allow me to explain. 

You actually have two menisci in each knee, one medially (inside part of your knee) and one laterally (outside part of your knee). 

The primary role of the meniscus is to serve as a shock absorber in the knee joint and distribute forces off of the thigh and shin bone. 

It also helps to stabilize the knee by making the joint a little bit "deeper". If you think of a flat dinner plate, the mensicus would be like adding edges to that plate, making it more like a bowl. 

Knee ligaments and menisci

One of the easiest ways to determine if your meniscus is contributing to your knee pain is if you have tenderness in the joint line. To find this, locate your knee cap and simply trace to either side of your knee, about halfway from the front of the knee to the back, and press inward. 

If it's uncomfortable, you may be having meniscus related pain. 

Other signs of meniscus injury include pain with bending or twisting of the knee, locking of the knee joint, painful clicking, or localized swelling. 

The interesting thing about the meniscus is that it actually loses blood flow as we age. 

As we get older, blood flow leaves the inside part of the meniscus and is typically only found in the outter portions. 

This makes it very difficult to surgically repair any damage here as it will not heal due to the lack of nutrients and healing mediators provided by blood.

The good news is, damage to the meniscus does not always correlate with pain. 

There are many people that have tears in their meniscus as confirmed with MRIs but have zero pain whatsoever. 

So, that being said, conservative management of meniscus related pain should always be your first choice!

If you get the knee stronger, more stable and moving better then you have a good chance of pain improving and eventually completely resolving. 

Staying active is always a good idea when dealing with any type of pain, but meniscus related pain does come with recommendations for modifications. 

As we go into more and more knee flexion, or bending of the knee, the meniscus actually moves which can contribute to more pain in someone already dealing with an injury. 

This is especially true when doing a weight bearing movement like a squat or a lunge. 

For this reason, it's generally a good idea to avoid deeper ranges of knee flexion while rehabbing your knee. It's never a bad idea to test out your pain free limits, but once they're identified you should avoid those ranges as much as you can. 

If you're looking for some ideas on ways you can improve the strength and stability of your knees, check out our YouTube playlists including patellofemoral pain, lateral knee pain and anterior knee pain. 

And of course, if you ever want to take the guess work out of your rehab and have some help with figuring out the best course of action instead, click that here to book your FREE phone consultation!