Meniscus tear: a knee specialist's guide

Each knee has a medial and a lateral meniscus. They act like shock-absorbing rims around the tibial plateau and are essential for spreading load evenly across the cartilage.

When describing where a tear sits, clinicians refer to the anterior horn, the body, and the posterior horn of the meniscus.

Tears are broadly traumatic — in a previously healthy knee, often from a twisting injury — or degenerative, in a knee with wear changes where even minor movement can be enough.

A bucket-handle tear is a longitudinal tear that can displace and lock the knee, leaving you unable to fully straighten it because of a mechanical block.

A root tear is a detachment near the meniscal anchor; it behaves much like losing the meniscus altogether and can accelerate cartilage overload.

A discoid meniscus is a congenital shape variant that usually becomes symptomatic only when it tears or turns unstable.

Assessment begins with your history and a physical examination. An MRI is commonly added when a tear is suspected, and treatment depends on confirming the pattern and how much it affects you.

Care may be non-operative, including structured physiotherapy, or surgical. Arthroscopic options range from trimming unstable tissue (partial meniscectomy) to meniscus repair in selected patients — often younger patients with peripheral tears and better tissue quality.

Not every tear seen on MRI needs surgery; the right decision matches your symptoms, examination findings, and goals after discussion with a knee specialist.