No fluff. No fads. Deep-dive investigative reports from the surgeon who actually sees the inside of the joints.
If you had a meniscectomy in your 20s and your knee has steadily worsened in your 30s, you are not "just getting older." You are seeing the predictable arc of a missing shock absorber. There is a procedure designed for exactly this.
The meniscus is the C-shaped fibrocartilage that distributes load between the femur and tibia. Take 50% of it out and you double the contact pressure on the cartilage underneath. The bone-on-bone arthritis we see in 40-somethings with prior partial meniscectomies is not bad luck — it is biomechanics.
The meniscus we removed in 2005 to "fix" your knee was almost certainly fixable in 2026. The damage downstream is the cost of an era when meniscal preservation was not the standard.
Dr. Sameh Elguizaoui, M.D. — Board-Certified Orthopedic Surgeon, Cartilage Restoration SpecialistMeniscal Allograft Transplantation (MAT) replaces the missing meniscus with a size-matched donor meniscus, fixed with bone plugs and sutures. It restores load distribution and protects the cartilage that remains.
An MRI-based measurement orders a fresh-frozen donor meniscus matched to within 5% of your tibial plateau dimensions.
The donor meniscus arrives with two small bone plugs at the anterior and posterior horns. These are seated in tunnels drilled in the tibia, locking the geometry of the load-bearing horns.
The meniscal rim is sutured to the capsule with inside-out or all-inside techniques, recreating a watertight, weight-bearing structure.
Cartilage defect, ligament instability, malalignment — all addressed in the same setting. Otherwise the new meniscus inherits the same forces that destroyed the old one.
Average graft survival approaches 75% at 10 years for well-selected patients. The earlier in the post-meniscectomy arc you intervene, the better.
Yes — most patients return to recreational running and low-impact sport. Heavy pivoting and contact sports are typically discouraged long-term.
For mild arthritis (Outerbridge 1–2), often yes. For severe (3–4) cartilage loss, MAT alone fails. We pair it with cartilage restoration if appropriate — see cartilage restoration deep dive.
Most major insurers do when medical necessity is documented (prior meniscectomy, persistent symptoms, intact cartilage on MRI). We handle pre-authorization in-house.
A high tibial osteotomy is added in the same surgery to unload the new meniscus. Putting a new meniscus into a malaligned knee is a recipe for premature failure.
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Take the first step toward recovery. Schedule a consultation with Dr. Elguizaoui to discuss your condition and explore your treatment options.