One of the most commonly injured parts of the knee, the meniscus, is a wedge-like rubbery cushion located where the major bones of the leg connect. A strong stabilizing tissue, the meniscus helps the knee joint carry weight, glide, and turn in many directions. It also keeps your femur and tibia from grinding against each other. Meniscal cartilage curves like the letter C at the inside and outside of each knee. These crescent-shaped shock absorbers between the tibia and femur have other important roles in the function and health of the knee, as they affect joint stability, force transmission, and lubrication.

A meniscus tear is usually caused by a twisting or pivoting motion, often with the foot planted and the knee partially flexed (for example, when lifting or playing tennis). Other knee injuries, such as a torn ligament, can happen at the same time that you tear your meniscus. As you age, your meniscus becomes worn and may tear more easily. Meniscus tears are rare in young children.

What are the symptoms?

The symptoms of a meniscus tear often vary. In a typical minor tear, there may be slight pain and swelling at first. These symptoms usually go away in 2 to 3 weeks.

A typical moderate tear can cause pain at the side or center of the knee, depending on where the tear is located. Swelling increases gradually over 2 to 3 days. This may make the knee feel stiff and limit bending, but walking is usually possible. There's often sharp pain with twisting or squatting. These symptoms go away but tend to recur with minor twisting or overuse.

In severe tears, pieces of the torn meniscus can dislocate into the joint space. This can make the knee catch, pop, or lock. You may not be able to straighten it. And the knee can feel "wobbly" or unstable, or give way without warning. It may swell and become stiff right after the injury, or over 2 to 3 days.

Older people whose menisci are worn may not be able to identify a specific event that caused the tear, or they may recall symptoms developing after a minor incident such as rising from a squatting position. Pain and minimal swelling are often the only symptoms.

From WebMD

Certain meniscal tears can be repaired. The ability to repair meniscal tears depends upon the type of tear, how long the meniscus has been torn, and how old the patient is. In general, younger patients with tears that are near to where the meniscus attaches to the capsule of the knee joint are better candidates for a meniscal repair than are older patients who have a tear that creates a free flap of meniscus. Meniscal tears can be repaired with either sutures, or special tacks that can be inserted through the arthroscope.

The benefits to repairing the meniscus are two fold:

    * maintains the role of the meniscus as a shock absorber in the knee;

    * reduces the risk of arthritis by keeping the femoral condyles from directly articulating (rubbing) against the tibia.

As was mentioned earlier doing this procedure would result in a longer rehab on the front end but better for the player in the long term. By removing the damaged portion of the Meniscus his/her rehab will be shorter because there is no repair to heal.

It's been shown that complete removal of a meniscus can result in progressive arthritis in the joint within a decade or so in a younger patient, sooner in patients who are older with preexisting "wear-and-tear" osteoarthritis. This increased potential for arthritis as the player gets older could potentially set him/her up for a total knee replacement down the line.

That being said some tears are best treated with removal of the torn part of the meniscus. In this situation, special instruments are used to remove the damaged portion of the meniscus while preserving as much healthy tissue as possible.