Medical meniscus repairs. An experimental and morphologic study.

In an effort to determine the healing potential of medial meniscus tears, 20 canine and 12 rhesus knee joints were subjected to transverse medial meniscus laceration and repair with a single Dexon suture (Davis & Geck, Pearl River, NY). At four months, 12 out of 32 (38%) had healed completely with restoration of the inner meniscal rim and 18 (56%) showed partial healing sufficient to protect the underlying articular cartilage. Only 2 (6%) of the menisci failed to heal. Histologic evaluation showed that the scar tissue present in the menisci was composed of unorganized collagen without common ground substance components. As a result of these studies, we believe that certain meniscal tears, particularly those involving the vascular periphery, can heal and may be repaired rather than treated by meniscectomy.