ReviewCureus2024
A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Medial Meniscus Root Tears: Is Surgery the Key to Better Outcomes?
Review in Cureus, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Efficacy of repair techniques for meniscal root tears: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2026Pooled it
- Transtibial Medial Meniscus Root Repair With Simplified Cross-Bar Suture Configuration and Knotless Centralization.Arthroscopy techniques · 2026Article
- Acute rather than insidious symptom onset is associated with better postoperative outcomes after transtibial pull-out repair for medial meniscus posterior root tears.Journal of experimental orthopaedics · 2026Article
- Clinical and radiographic outcomes of arthroscopic repair versus conservative management for medial meniscus posterior root tears: A comparative cohort study.Joint diseases and related surgery · 2026Article
- Reversed Suture Anchor Combined With Biological Augmentation Technique for Medial Meniscus Posterior Root Repair.Arthroscopy techniques · 2025Article
- Why Hoop Tension Matters: A Biomechanical Perspective on Medial Meniscus Posterior Root Tears-A Narrative Review.Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Medial meniscus root tears (MMRTs) are serious injuries that disrupt knee biomechanics, often accelerating cartilage degeneration and osteoarthritis when left untreated. These injuries are increasingly recognized as a major cause of knee pain and functional limitations, particularly among middle-aged and older adults. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the outcomes of conservative management compared to surgical intervention for MMRT, focusing on pain relief, functional recovery, and the progression of osteoarthritis. A thorough search of PubMed, Scopus, Google Scholar, and the Cochrane Library identified six studies that directly compared surgical repair, primarily transtibial pull-out repair, with conservative management. Outcome measures included the Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS), the Lysholm score, and the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) subjective score. Surgical intervention showed marked superiority in KOOS scores, with a standardized mean difference (SMD) of 1.42 (95% CI: 0.97 to 1.88, P < 0.00001), reflecting significant improvements in pain, daily function, and quality of life. However, pooled analyses for the Lysholm score (SMD: 0.21, 95% CI: -0.23 to 0.65, P = 0.35) and IKDC score (SMD: 0.12, 95% CI: -0.56 to 0.80, P = 0.73) did not show statistically significant differences between treatments. High heterogeneity (I² > 50%) was noted, likely due to differences in study populations, follow-up periods, and methodologies. These results suggest that surgical repair offers superior pain relief and functional benefits for MMRT compared to conservative management, positioning it as the preferred option for most patients. Nonetheless, conservative management may remain suitable for certain patients, particularly those with contraindications to surgery. Further high-quality, long-term research is essential to confirm these findings and inform clinical decision-making.
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Registered trials
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