30-year-old Avoids Arthritis with Meniscus Replacement Program the BioKnee
So I was 11 years old when I had surgery and they completely removed my lateral meniscus on my left knee. And the doctors pretty much said don't do anything because if you do, you're going to end up in a wheelchair because you're going to get arthritis. So I went from living a very active life to being very afraid to do much of anything, but I held open the possibility that something in the future would come along. Eventually we learned about Dr. Stone. He was so positive. He was the first doctor I saw that just was so enthusiastic. It was great. And the surgery was great. So it was 10 years ago that I had the meniscus allograft. I couldn't ski, I couldn't hike, especially downhill. And I'm doing that now. And I'm skiing. I'm now living a very active life. I have two little munchkins at home and I can run around with them and I can fully squat down with them, which I do all the time. And I do yoga. So there's, there's not a lot that I haven't found anything actually that I can't do.
Sara B. Profile
Many children and youth athletes are set down an inevitable path of early arthritis due to meniscectomy repairs that remove a significant portion of the meniscus cartilage in an attempt to relieve the pain from the damage to the meniscus.
The removal of this critical shock absorber leads to more surgery, more joint pain, and bone-on-bone arthritis over time, which is why Dr. Stone opts to replace the meniscus with a transplant whenever possible.
An injury during her youth almost set Sara down a path towards osteoarthritis. However, this is Sara 10 years after her meniscus transplantation from her BioKnee®. 10 years that could've been spent in inactivity and pain management instead were spent enjoying yoga, skiing, & hiking with her family. Her experience serves as a critical reminder to preserve or replace the tissues in young people's joints to protect their athletic futures.