Surgeons’ predictions of meniscal tear outcomes no better than chance
But they recommended exercise over surgery in 78% of cases
16th August 2019
Surgeons are no better at determining which patients might benefit from an operation or exercise to treat torn knee cartilage than if they just flipped a coin, a study suggests.
Dutch researchers surveyed 194 orthopaedic surgeons to see how they thought patients would respond to either arthroscopic partial meniscectomy or exercise therapy in a survey using 20 test cases with middle-aged patients with non-obstructive meniscal tears.
They also asked the surgeons which of the two treatments they would recommend in each case.
The test cases were based