How is an occult tear in the medial meniscus treated?

The answer is to these questions is – it depends on the location of the tear, type and size of tear, and whether there are degenerative changes in your knee also. The meniscus is a C shaped disc of fibrocartilage. The blood supply comes from the (periphery) outside of the meniscus – the so called ‘red zone’. Towards the centre of the meniscus (the ‘white’ zone) the blood supply is poor. There are two menisci in the knee – one on the inside of the knee (medial) and one on the outside (lateral).

Thanks for your question. This is indeed problem that many of us will face as we get older and certainly even in young patients this may occur. My only question to you is why you underwent the MRI? Was it for back pain or nerve symptoms in your limbs? As a Sports/MSK physician, I believe that exercise is a essential. This will help keep the weight off, maintain your strength and hopefully limit the progression of your wear and tear (degenerative) changes in your back.