Surgeons’ predictions of meniscal tear outcomes no better than chance

But they recommended exercise over surgery in 78% of cases
Reuters Health Staff writer
Coin flip

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.