There are two menisci in each knee joint - the medial meniscus and the lateral meniscus; each of the menisci are "C" shaped and exist to cushion impact between the lower leg bone (shinbone) and the upper leg bone (thighbone). Medically speaking, the menisci are termed as "fibrocartilage" and are soft and rubberlike in nature. The medial meniscus is found on the inside of each knee joint whereas the lateral meniscus is found on the outside portion of each knee.
Meniscii of the knee have the following important functions:
Your menisci act much like a wedge to help naturally prevent over-rotation in the joint, but just as important, the menisci are the true shock absorbers in the knee joint. When walking, jumping or running, there are heavy forces exerted on the knees; your meniscus absorbs and disperses much of the forces instead of the ends of the bones (where the upper leg and lower leg meet in the knee joint) . If the ends of these bones absorb too much force, they will become damaged. It is also worth knowing that the amount of force exerted on the knee joint grows exponentially as speed of movement increases (ie. from walking to running) 1. If you are already suffering from some meniscus damage, it goes without saying that you want to minimize load on the knee joint when you are upright, so take care to avoid running and/or jumping as load forces multiply quite quickly with faster movements.
Both the medial and lateral meniscus pads sit on top of the tibia bone (lower leg bone) and form a concave surface for the rounded ends of the femur bone (upper leg bone) to rest on. These menisci act like suction cups to help hold the tibia and femur bones together in the joint. Both lateral and medial menisci are held in place with 'root' attachments at the very posterior aspect of the meniscus (back of the knee) - this area being known as the "posterior horn". As the name suggests, it roots the tissue in place inside the knee, providing stability and helping prevent the meniscus from being squeezed out of place by the bones of your knee (like a toothpaste out a tube). Both the lateral and medial menisci are also attached at the anterior horn location where it attaches to the tibia via the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) which is in the center front of the knee. The medial meniscus has a third point of attachment at the Medial Collateral Ligament (MCL) which is found on the medial (inner) side of the knee. As the medial meniscus has 3 points of attachement, compared to only 2 points for the lateral meniscus, there is less freedom of movement of the medial meniscus in the knee joint. This reduced freedom of movement is one of the primary reasons that the medial meniscus is damaged more often than the lateral meniscus - basically, the medial meniscus is less forgiving.
The shape of your meniscus tear is important because it will help determine the type of treatment you receive; some tears will heal without surgery, some can be treated surgically and some can't be fixed. Tears come in many shapes and sizes, however there are 3 basic shapes for all meniscal tears: longitudinal, horizontal, and radial. If these tears are not treated, they may become more damaged and develop a displaced tear often referred to as a bucket handle tear (longitudinal), flap tear (horizontal) or parrot beak tear (radial). Complex tears are a combination of two or more of these basic shapes with damage occurring in more than one direction and depth.
A complex meniscal tear is most often experienced in younger people due to a sports related traumatic event. The forces on the knee can become so great that the meniscus is squished and pulled at the same time. Large, diverse stresses at different stress points can tear the meniscus into more than one tear shape. Often times, when you have such a traumatic injury, you are suffering from MCL or ACL ligament tears at the same time and surgery is needed to both repair what can be repaired and remove some or all of the meniscus if needed.
Natural degeneration of soft tissue in the body is experienced as we age, and this changes the surface of meniscal tissue as well. As we age, the meniscus gets thinner; if we have subjected the menisci to a lot of heavy use over the years, they will wear out more rapidly. Wear and degeneration usually manifests itself in the inner edges of the meniscus starting to fray, as the inner edges are where the meniscus is thinnest. Degenerative changes to the knee happen slowly, so you may eventually suffer a torn lateral meniscus from a simple daily activity - it can happen unexpectedly. Although you may not have suffered from a previous meniscus injury, you are still at risk for degeneration of your meniscal tissue over time - especially if you have placed frequent repetitive stress on the knee joints over the years. Past events in your history make a difference on the severity of degeneration. Examples of such events might be:
Weakened meniscal tissue can tear from relatively little to no stress on the tissue. You may not even notice that something has happened to your knee until it becomes worse and you begin to feel continued pain. The most common type of complex tear is a combination of horizontal and radial tears.
Your age will directly influence the cause of your meniscus injury. It's been proven that the meniscus becomes weaker over time resulting in degenerative meniscal tears; 60% of individuals over the age of 65 will experience a degenerative meniscus tear.2
A degenerative tear would require partial meniscectomy to remove damaged and displaced tissue. A meniscal repair isn't possible to fix degenerative damage because of the jagged and torn nature of the meniscus. A meniscal repair of degenerative tissue would be very difficult to perform and reduces the rate of success for healing. Because of this fact, your age increases the likelihood that your surgeon will feel that your tear can't be repaired.
Anyone can injure their meniscus, though a complex meniscus tear most often occurs due to degeneration of the meniscal tissue. People under the age of 20 almost always suffer complex meniscal tears due to sports activities. As you age, however, the likelihood of your meniscus tear occurring due to a sport activity decreases whereas a degenerative causal factor rises. Complex tears experienced by 80% of individuals between the ages of 40 to 59 were caused by either a non-sports related traumatic incident or with no identifiable cause.
A complex meniscus injury can happen from sudden and traumatic accidents. This can happen from sudden changes in direction with the leg - like when your foot is fixed / planted on the ground and a twisting force is applied to your knee. It can also get injured with a combination of excessive straightening or bending of the knee which is what happens in a forceful jump or landing, and / or direct side impact to the knee joint.
Complex tears due to acute injury:
Athletes that play sports where their knee is bent have an increased risk of getting a complex meniscus injury. This includes athletes who participate in sports like volleyball, football, soccer, tennis, basketball, baseball, hockey, weight lifters and racket sports.
Everyone can be affected by degeneration of their meniscus over time, edges of the meniscus become frayed, jagged, thin, and brittle. Any repetitive or frequent movement can place stress on your meniscus over the years. The knee joint itself suffers degenerative changes such as arthritis, osteoarthritis and/or cartilage thinning on the ends of the bones. This gradual wear and tear on the knees comes for overuse, repetitive knee movements, twisting or prolonged weight bearing activities. Degenerative changes to the knee happen slowly, so you may suffer a torn meniscus from a simple daily activity. You need to be aware that this injury can happen to anyone and happens more often the older you are. It is not just isolated to athletes!
If you've suffered a traumatic sudden injury to your knee while playing sports, swelling to your knee will happen within a few hours after the injury or in the following days. Your knee may feel unstable - as though it may collapse at any moment; you may also experience more intense pain when bending, walking, or twisting your knee. You'll continue to feel some tenderness on the outer part of your knee. You may also find that you are unable to move your knee (locking) or a damaged meniscus is catching when you flex the joint.
Mild, degenerative complex meniscus tears are much more subtle, usually manifesting through knee pain that increases over time. You may or may not have swelling after exercise or daily activities. If you do have pain, you may possibly feel weakness and instability in your knee. You may feel your knee experiencing mild catching, snapping or clicking when it is being flexed.
As a degenerative complex meniscus tear becomes more severe, you might feel a 'giving-way' sensation (instability) in your knee and your knee may be more likely to lock up. Pain may increase with certain activities, like climbing a set of stairs, kneeling to do simple things such as putting away groceries or squatting to pick up something you may have dropped.
If you're suffering for a chronic complex meniscus injury you may have developed a limp due to severe pain and/or you may be unable to stand for long periods of time. A chronic injury could also result in your knee 'buckling' when weight is placed on it and/or loss of range of motion. You may develop a 'cyst' bulging out from the back or side your knee. The cyst may decrease your range of movement and leave you with an inability to stretch out your knee. You may also experience tightness due to swelling and tenderness around your knee.
A complex meniscus tear is diagnosed via the same methods that any meniscus tear is diagnosed - by a visit to your doctor for a physical examination of the knee. Range of motion tests will be done to see how much movement has been lost in the knee. There are many conditions other than meniscus injuries that can cause knee pain such as an ACL tear, patellar or quadriceps tendinitis, a fracture, arthritis or knee bursitis. Getting a proper diagnosis is important so you can treat your condition correctly. Having said that, if you are experiencing locking or catching in the knee joint, odds are good that there is either meniscus damage or articular cartilage damage (or both).
Your doctor may consider previous knee injuries or joint stiffness that you may have had in the past. This will help the doctor to determine if you have a more complex injury in your knee and rule out any other knee injuries that may be present.
A set of range of motion tests will be completed by the doctor including the McMurray's Test, joint line tenderness and the Ege's test. Your knee might hurt from the doctor poking and prodding at it, but by doing this the doctor will know for sure the source of your pain, the level of tenderness in and around your knee and how well your knee can move with this condition.
It's possible for your doctor to think you have a medial meniscus tear if the physical tests and pain present near the opposite side of the knee. This most commonly happens with posterior lateral meniscus tears. The only way to know for sure where your tear is located and what type of tear you have is through diagnostic testing via an MRI. Even then, if the tear is expected to be on the medial (innermost) side of the knee, the MRI may not take an image at an angle needed to see the tear on the lateral side. (source: Campbells' Operative Orthopaedics Twelfth Edition)
Your doctor may suggest diagnostic testing to obtain more detailed information, and assess the amount and/or type of damage done to your knee and meniscus. There are a variety of different tests available to help them analyze the situation; and the recommendation will be dependent on your injury. X-rays will provide an image of the overall bone structure of your knee. It's helpful in identifying abnormal bone shapes, fractures, arthritis, or loose bones and bone abnormalities that may mimic a torn meniscus.
Other tests like a bone scan, MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) or blood tests may be done if an x-ray looks normal or the doctor is unsure whether you have a fracture. These tests will also rule out any infections of the bone or tissue and help to determine if you are suffering from other injuries like arthritis or osteoarthritis (degenerative damage).
If you are experiencing a build up of fluid in the knee, your doctor may aspirate (use a needle) to remove fluid from the joint to check for bacterial infection. Your doctor will be able to determine whether there is an infection or not by drawing a small sample of the synovial fluid with a needle. If it is determined that there is an infection, you will be prescribed antibiotics to get rid of the infection and the physician may pursue deeper inspections into determining the source o infection.
Once your doctor has given you the news about your meniscus injury he/she will immediately start you off with proactive conservative treatments - even before you have a full MRI diagnosis. This is because your doctor wants to arrest the meniscus damage, decrease swelling and get you on the path toward healing. Depending on severity and location meniscus injuries can heal through conservative treatment options - not every torn meniscus requires surgery!
Since you are reading this, you probably know that serious knee injuries do not just disappear. Over time, it will wreak havoc on your knees, hips, ankles and lower back due to lack of movement, over-compensation and a change in gait. It will also wreak havoc on your opposite knee, due to the fact that you will be overusing it to compensate for not using the bad knee. Recovery takes a longer time for such chronic (long term) injuries, but proper healing is essential to regain strength and get you back to the activities you enjoy.
Everything in the human body is connected. Any meniscus injury can lead to other injuries over time if not treated properly. You WILL subconsciously start shifting more of your weight onto your opposite leg when performing normal daily activities, like climbing the stairs or when standing for long periods of time. You may also try to limp using your opposite (healthy / stronger) leg to get back to work, activities or your sports sooner to avoid waiting for your medial meniscus injury to heal completely.
Many of our clients have experienced pain in their opposite foot, ankle, knee and hip because they shift their standing weight to the opposite side of their body. For example, you might normally climb stairs by leading with your injured knee, but instead will lead with your opposite leg and hop or shuffle more than walk the stairs. Even though changing something like this seems like a really small thing, changing the way you would normally climb a set of stairs when your body isn't used to that can result in pain and injuries in your healthy knee and leg.
Over time you'll notice that you automatically start to put more weight on your non-injured side to cope with everyday activities. When you experience pain in other areas of the body due to minimizing the pain from an older injury, this is something called "over compensation" pain. Usually degenerative medial meniscus pain will happen to your dominant knee (if you are right handed, this would be your right knee). When this happens there is a higher risk that you'll over-strain your weaker knee that's compensating for your injury, because it's just not as strong as your dominant side.
Circulation Boost (Circulatory Boost) is the best home treatment available to deal with over compensation issues and injury prevention by maintaining healthy blood flow in around your injured meniscus AND in your healthy knee as well. If you are also experiencing overcompensation pain in the hips, we recommend the use of a BACK/HIP TShellz Wrap®
Even if you try to avoid over compensation pain in your healthy knee, you're still at risk for re-injuring your damaged meniscus. Ignoring over compensation pain and the pain felt from your meniscus injury while returning to regular activities or your job can and usually will lead to even more problems with healing.
Time is not kind on an immobilized joint - you lose strength in your knee but worse than that, you lose the range of motion from atrophy (your flexible tendons, muscles and ligaments slowly shrink / waste away, decreasing joint elasticity). The more time that goes by with your knee immobilized, the more likely you'll wind up with a worsening meniscus tear or perhaps a secondary chronic (long term) problem stemming from reduced range of motion and/or immobility. Basically it means that your knee won't perform as well as it once did and becomes more prone to injury again later on.
If you have a torn meniscus in your knee, it's very important to heal it quickly and completely. Minimizing the healing time of your medial meniscus should be an obvious goal, as meniscus tears will no doubt limit your ability to go about your daily routine; but also keep in mind that untreated meniscus tears will typically get worse over time. As stated here (pennmedicine.org), "If not treated, part of the meniscus may come loose and slip into the joint. You may need surgery to restore full knee function. Untreated meniscus tears can increase in size and lead to complications, such as arthritis."
Dealing with a continuously worsening meniscus tear, chronic inflammation / swelling, loss of range of motion and an increasing risk of overcompensation injuries mean you'll have a greater chance of winding up with a chronic knee condition or a serious case that needs to be resolved with surgery. This is why it's so important to continuously use conservative treatment tools to treat and heal recurring soft tissue damage before it builds into something bigger. For anyone that is suffering from a torn meniscus, having the right tools makes all the difference.
Before we go further, it's important to understand that your body is capable of healing itself. This is why your doctor will always try to opt for the conservative treatment first - usually, it works although it takes time to heal. Your blood flow carries oxygen and much needed nutrients to injured tissue in the body while also flushing away toxins and waste at the same time.
When you have a complex meniscus injury, however, you are dealing with multiple tears. There is not much blood flow available to the meniscus, especially if your tear is in the White zone; inflammation and reduced movement (lack of activity or on-going immobility) reduces the flow of blood to an area that's already receiving very little blood flow. If you're moving your injured meniscus around, you run a risk of increasing the severity of the injury. If there has been some healing, you could re-injure your meniscus all over again.
Blood Flow - the natural healing process in your body - needs assistance for meniscus injuries because blood flow is greatly reduced when you're injured. When treating any type of meniscus or knee injury (ie. Lateral meniscus tear, bucket-handle tear, posterior horn tear, or anterior horn tear), you need to increase blood flow to your injury while your knee is healing. This increase in blood flow will accelerate your body's own ability to heal itself. In our opinion, the Knee TShellz Wrap® is the most highly effective blood flow stimulation device that you will find available for home use on the market.
If you have a meniscus injury, it's very important to heal it quickly and completely. Minimizing the healing time should be an obvious goal, as a complex meniscus tear will limit your ability to go about your daily routine for a long period of time.
If you have a meniscus injury, it's very important to heal it quickly and completely. Minimizing the healing time should be an obvious goal, as a chronic tear will limit your ability to go about your daily routine for a long period of time. Unfortunately, if your tear is too large, the shape is degenerative and/or complex in nature, or the shape has created displaced tissue it is likely you will not qualify for a meniscal repair. If you have to undergo surgery on your meniscus, your physician will quickly get you on the path to rehabilitation. Now, the aggressiveness of the rehabilitation efforts will depend on a variety of factors including (but not limited to): your age, the state of your injury before surgery, the location of the meniscus tear and how soon will you return to normal activity.
A seemingly small, nagging injury in your meniscus that's not properly treated can lead to a chronic, painful, and degenerative meniscus tear that can persist for months or even years if not properly treated.
Meniscus surgery is the most commonly performed orthopedic surgery in the United States1 and, by their very nature of significant damage, complex meniscus tears frequently require surgical solutions.. Physicians understand that the function of the meniscus is very important and at this time, implants used to replace a meniscus have indicated poor results. Knowing the heavy correlation between meniscus deficiency and osteoarthritis, doctors are doing everything they can to try and repair - or at least save some of the meniscus rather than removing it entirely. If you receive good news from your doctor, he or she will predict that your meniscus can be successfully healed through the use of conservative treatment therapies - without resorting to knee surgery. If you have been given news that you're going to need surgery, once surgery is complete your doctor will once again start you on home conservative therapies. Talk to your doctor about when you can incorporating the Knee TShellz Wrap® into your home treatment plan during your post surgery recovery.
The first step for conservative treatment of a meniscus tear is to reduce the swelling in the knee to "open up" the area for more blood flow. Anyone in the health-care business knows that your blood supplies the oxygen and much needed nutrients required to heal soft tissue tears. This is why for years, doctors, trainers, and other medical professionals have recommended RICE (Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation) to treat the pain and swelling of fresh injuries, chronic pain, re-injuries and overcompensation strains.
This is important because once blood vessels are blocked or damaged, they can no longer carry oxygenated blood to your damaged tissue so this tissue begins to break-down. Without cold therapytissue damage and break-down continue as they cannot get the oxygen they need to survive By limiting the amount of damage done to the meniscus (and other soft tissue in the knee), you also limit the amount of healing that needs to occur. Arresting the damage (preventing the injury from worsening), is an extremely important step to get quickly on the path heal both acute or chronic knee injuries faster and with less pain.
Quite a few people think their meniscus is healed after their swelling and inflammation are gone and their knee feels better. They also make the mistake of returning to regular activities too soon without proper time for healing. The truth is that healing takes time and after the swelling is gone, your meniscus injury isn't even close to being fully healed. Proper healing takes time - especially when it comes to cartilage, and quite often meniscal damage can persist without the presence of pain or swelling.
After the inflammation in and around your knee has been reduced, providing extra blood flow and strengthening the meniscus (and other soft tissue in the knee joint) is recommended. Believe it or not, the best time for you to focus on avoiding re-injury and strengthening the weakened tissue in your knee is when the swelling is gone and your meniscus has started to heal. It's vital that you don't go back to activities too soon because you can easily bring about a major setback in your recovery...
Most people we deal with tell us these scenarios have happened to them many times in the past. The real challenge is how to promote blood flow to your injured meniscus without causing further damage. This goal is even more complicated by the fact that you have to use your knee for nearly everything in your active life.
The answer is simple. Your body can heal itself and it's the blood in your body that makes it all happen. Your blood is how everything that's good inside of you is transported directly to your injured meniscus tissue. Your blood carries oxygen, nutrients and water right to the source of your injury and pain. Bringing proper blood flow to your injured meniscus is essential to healing.
Promoting blood flow around injured tissue to help the body heal itself is a concept that's been used for centuries. Oxygen and nutrients, carried in your own blood, are critical for the body to heal itself. Without adequate blood flow, recovering from your meniscus injury will be slow... sometimes so slow that it cannot keep up with natural degeneration over time.
Even though the concept is simple, getting more blood flow to a meniscal injury is very hard, and in some cases just not possible (there is basically no blood flow to the inner two thirds of the meniscus so in such cases the only real alternative is surgery). Traditional methods require you to move your sore/stiff knee in order to promote blood flow, but this same motion that promotes blood flow can also make your pain and meniscus injury much worse (especially if you need to immobilize your knee during surgery recovery). Relying on movement alone to increase blood flow puts you in danger of re-injuring your meniscus.
So what do you do when you need to increase blood flow, but you can't move your knee without re-injuring your meniscus?
This is where the Knee TShellz Wrap® and Circulation Boost (Circulatory Boost) come in!
Regular treatments with a Knee TShellz Wrap® will increase blood circulation in the area, reduce pain and stiffness and increase overall flexibility in the area of application (yes, the knee - or anywhere you put it). Increased blood flow will whisk away damaged tissue, toxins, and any bacteria in or around your injured meniscus to promote more effective healing. Getting rid of toxins will allow all of the positive healing processes to start in your injury. Increasing blood flow will also increase the amount of oxygen that's being sent to your injured tissue AND boost your tissue's ability to absorb oxygen. (reference: link)
Remember, the meniscus is cartilage and does not receive much blood flow naturally. When you rest your knee, you are not creating the natural blood flow your knee usually receives. With the use of a TShellz Wrap® you can increase your body's blood supply to the knee to assist the body in its recovery process.
Keeping your knee as healthy and strong as possible throughout the healing process will allow you to get back to your regular activities faster. The Knee TShellz Wrap®, available exclusively from MendMeShop®, provides effective, non-invasive, non-addictive pain relief and healing with no side effects.
The benefits of TShellz Wrap® do not end once your knee pain stops! Even once your meniscus troubles are mostly behind you, your activities can put your knee at risk of an overuse injury, tightness, or another tear. A TShellz Wrap® treatment before activity is an easy way to warm up the knee tissues and prepare them for use. Then, end your day with another treatment to prevent tightness from setting in overnight. This incredible healing tool will be the ticket to healthy knees for years to come!
During your recovery, you will probably have to modify and/or eliminate any activities that cause pain or discomfort in your knee area until your pain and inflammation settle. With these therapies you will notice improvement within a few weeks, with most meniscus patients seeing some improvement quickly. The more diligent you are with your treatment and rehabilitation, the faster you will see successful results. If you start using your knee before it has a chance to heal properly (even though it may feel better), you can end up doing a lot more damage than good!
The most common question we receive from individuals prior to purchasing is - how many times a day should I be using my wrap and when should I be using them? While treatment plans will differ for each individual and their specific injury, there are general guidelines that should be adhered to.
The TShellz Wrap® would then be used:
We highly recommend you go to our Torn Meniscus Treatments page and learn more about torn meniscus treatment options.
We believe the use of TShellz Wraps® for boosting blood flow in the area of application is one of the most under-utilized home treatment options available on the market today. We have client after client that have tried many options out there and have been amazed at how effective and fast the TShellz Wrap treatment can relieve pain and increase localized blood flow in the treatment area.
The TShellz Wraps significantly increase bloodflow to tissue in the treatment area - period. With regular use of the Knee TShellz Wrap:
*Know that every personal soft tissue injury is unique and the TShellz Wrap may not work for everyone. This is why we offer a 60-day full money back return on all our TShellz Wrap devices.
Dealing with aches and pains affecting the foot, ankle, leg, knee, hamstring, hip, back, arm, shoulder, elbow, wrist, or hand? If so, then applying the Arnica Infusion to any of these targeted areas will bring about fast relief from the pain and sore tissues. Simply apply a small amount of cream to the body and moments later, you will experience a soothing and comforting sensation over the area.
Arnica Infusion is specially designed to relieve pain due to sore muscles and joints associated with arthritis, backaches, sprains, strains, and bruises. No matter if you are dealing with an acute injury, chronic pain, or a general "flare-up" - you will experience fast relief from pain and inflammation.
This is a product that many of our current MendMeShop customers asked us to develop. So we focused our time and resources over the past few years and came up, with we believe, will be one of more effective, fast acting, topical pain relief creams on the market.
You are likely familiar with some of the standard topical agents on the market as most of our customers use them. The are mass marketed and even found in most department stores now.
Well, we are here to say that Arnica Infusion goes many steps beyond what they offer.
Made in the USA at an FDA registered manufacturing facility, you can be assured that Arnica Infusion is both safe and effective. We only source top grade ingredients while implementing strict quality control checks during every step of the production process. Expect the same high quality that MendMeShop customers have been accustomed to since we started the company in 2005.
The "Cool Blue" formula is the perfect balance between the smooth application of a cream and the effective absorbing factor of a gel. It is not too thick and not too thin - just the right texture. Best of all, it feels very nice on the skin!
Each application of Arnica Infusion feels so comforting and soothing, we are certain it will become an item you will not want to live without.
The Arnica Infusion formula is based on a combination of scientific research and the use of high quality ingredients. The properties within the formula were chosen for their pain relief, anti-inflammatory, and soothing qualities.
The acting ingredients within the formula include ones many of us are familiar with; along with ones that have not received a lot of publicity (only in research circles). Extensive testing resulted in a blending of ingredients that provides the most synergistic of benefits.
The notable ingredients in the Arnica Infusion formula include:
Extensive quality control procedures during the manufacturing process ensure the ingredients and final product are both safe and effective. We would not stake our reputation on anything but the best.
Apply Arnica Infusion at work to help reduce acute discomfort associated with overuse of muscles and joints. No matter if you are in a physical demanding job or work within an office environment, you will be placing stress on different parts of the body and aches and pains will result.
If you suffer from a sprained ligament, pulled muscle, strained tendon, or even bruising - apply Arnica Infusion for quick relief of the pain.
Application of Arnica Infusion can be done up to a maximum of 4 times per day on a consistent basis to help bring about relief from various pains and aches.
Follow up your TShellz and Cold treatments with an application of Arnica Infusion. Combine the pain relieving benefits of Arnica Infusion along with the therapeutic benefits of the wraps to make your recovery go much more smoothly.
Do not apply Arnica Infusion within a 2 hour timespan before a TShellz Wrap® treatment.
Whether you decide to use the Arnica Infusion in conjunction with the T-Shell and other treatments - or if you decide to use the cream as a stand-alone product - you will not be disappointed with the results. We guarantee it.
If you have a significant meniscus injury you may undergo surgery or the doctor may prescribe a course of conservative treatments if he/she feels it can heal without surgery. Either way, your doctor or physical therapist will most likely want to to keep much of your weight off your knee and recommend the use of crutches. Within a course of conservative treatments, they will also prescribe gentle stretching of an injured knee. They don't prescribe this to annoy you - it is in fact the most important part of knee injury recovery. You probably know of someone that chose not to do these stretches as it is common - and they paid a high price for it. By not listening to the therapist (ie. not stretching), there is a huge chance of re-injuring your knee or even sustaining an injury greater than the original injury ever was.
One of the most important tasks you will be required to complete by our doctor or physical therapist is stretching your knee after injury. 'Working' the tissue, strengthen the tendons, ligaments but the key ingredient is increasing blood flow to the area. The meniscus is a very blood starved area and exercising the area will allow extra blood flow into the tissue. The new flush of blood also helps clear away any dead tissue and waste inside the joint.
Scar tissue develops as part of the healing process. Even when you're injured and in pain you need to keep moving to break-up scar tissue. Regular movement can increase healthy range of motion (ROM) of your knee, guaranteeing you a speedier recovery process and return to regular activities. Moving when you're injured is hard. Since moving while injured can be painful most people think it's better to stop moving, rest their knee and hope that their knee injury will heal all on its' own. Even though rest is important to recovery, too much rest during the recovery process will increase the amount of scar tissue in your knee.
During the healing process your body will fill in tears in your knee with dense, brittle tissue called "scar tissue". The human body will use scar tissue as a temporary solution and will try to build the scar tissue as fast as possible to patch tears together. Scar tissue can form fast to bring together the edges of a tear, but working fast doesn't mean that the job's done right. When scar tissue forms it doesn't come together as neatly as regular (healthy) collagen does. Scar tissue fibers will lay down over top of your tear in a cluttered, messy and jumbled up way.
>Imagine throwing a bunch of toothpicks in the air... When they hit the ground they will land in a random, unorganized way. It even seems silly to think that they could land perfectly straight and all in the same direction. This is how scar tissue works - the scar tissue that forms in a tear will be unorganized and won't line up properly with the healthy tissue surrounding the tear. This scar tissue will also attach to everything in and around your knee injury including the surrounding healthy tissue as well. This can result in a long-term fusing together of your ligaments, muscles and tendons; it is this fusing of scar tissue that stiffens your knee, reducing mobility and making the injury even more painful when you move. Using a good passive knee stretching routine at home - every day - will help you heal and ensure your tissue is strong and healthy!
A complete removal of the meniscus via surgery will change the way your knee functions - this can also occur in partial meniscus removals if the portion is substantial . What has been shown in numerous studies is that when a meniscus is removed (fully or partially) , it is nearly 100% guaranteed that you sooner or later suffer from osteoarthritis in the knee. Osteoarthritis in the knee means that articular cartilage (the smooth cartilage covering the ends of the bones that meet in the knee joint) wears and breaks down, exposing bone and eventually leading to bone wear and breakdown as well. The simple task of using passive knee stretching on a daily basis will retain knee strength and flexibility, helping slow the onset of osteoarthritis (and other degenerative knee conditions). Passive knee stretching has been shown to decrease rheumatoid arthritis pain and slow down the rate of joint degeneration (source Scandinavian Journal of Rheumatology)
Inflammatory response diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis have been known to leave you with 'morning stiffness'. The constant build-up of inflammation in the tissue and joint blocks the tissue with waste matter. Your are left with weakened muscles and the feeling of an unstable joint with your knee and leg feeling 'drained of energy'. By simply increasing the elasticity of soft tissue in the knee via passive stretching, you can change the over-all health of your knee joint. Stretching soft tissue in the knee on daily basis increases blood flow, helping flush out the toxins inside the knee joint; this results in reduced knee pain. (source US National Library of Medicine)
As you slowly start implementing passive knee stretches, you should find that your knee recovery will accelerate as well. The increased joint flexing will help your knee connective tissue to regain elasticity; the stretching movements in the knee joint will increase blood flow to the recovering injury, further aiding in the healing process. Passive stretching is what lies between bedridden immobility and crutches. Using crutches too quickly can be detrimental to your recovering knee, as many patients can certainly attest. A quick slip on the crutch can easily result in your bad knee bearing your full body weight, often causing a worse re-injury or perhaps a fall.
Incorporating passive knee stretches into your treatment routine (when your physician or physical therapists says you are ready to do so) not only helps minimize the growth of scar tissue, but it also increases the elasticity and strength of the joint. After utilizing passive knee stretches over time, your knee joint will be better prepared to handle higher and higher loads. Eventually you will reach a stage where your knee joint can handle crutches or standing for longer and longer period of time. This is the final stage of recovery and depending on age, the nature of the injury, your weight and many other factors, it can take the longest time to complete. But remember, for knee injuries, it pays to be patient! Rushing your knee injury recovery almost never pays.
We are an FDA Registered Company, and our TShellz Wrap, also known as a Circulatory Boost Wrap, is an FDA Registered Medical Device suitable for use in hospitals and therapeutic clinics. Since it is deemed safe for patients to use themselves, the TShellz Wrap can be used for home treatment.
Since you are reading this, you probably know that serious meniscus injuries do not just disappear. Over time, they usually wreak havoc on other joints in the body due to lack of movement and over-compensation. Recovery takes a longer time for such chronic (long term) injuries, but proper healing is essential to regain strength and get you back to the activities you enjoy.
The longer your injury endures, the greater the risk of running into serious overcompensation injuries.
Anyone in need of rapid recovery and complete healing must consider a comprehensive treatment plan that includes an effective means to minimize swelling and inflammation yet also stimulate healing and tissue elasticity. We have found no better set of tools that can be used at home than this:
Conservative treatment tools just like these have been used successfully by thousands of knee injury sufferers - just like you.
We believe the use of TShellz® Circulatory Boost Wraps for boosting blood flow to soft tissue in the area of application is one of the most under-utilized home treatment options available on the market today. We have client after client that have tried many options out there and have been amazed at how effective and fast the TShellz Wrap treatment helped relieve their pain while increasing blood flow in the knee.
With regular use of the Knee TShellz® Circulatory Boost Wrap:
*Know that every personal soft tissue injury is unique and the TShellz Wrap may not work for everyone. This is why we offer a 60-day money back return on all our TShellz Wrap devices.
Product Advisors are available 9:00 am to 5:00 pm Eastern Standard Time Monday to Friday.
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If any question or concern arises, call us or simply send us an email at any time (we check our emails constantly all throughout the day and night.. even on holidays!). We will respond as soon as possible.
1."Meniscus Tear". 2019. Physioworks.Com.Au. Accessed July 25 2019. website.
2."Meniscal Lesions: Diagnosis And Treatment". 2019. Medscape. Accessed July 25 2019. website.
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During your recovery, you will probably have to modify and/or eliminate any activities that cause pain or discomfort at the location of your soft tissue injury until the pain and inflammation settle. The more diligent you are with your treatment and rehabilitation, the faster you will see successful results!
Please be aware that this information is neither intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. CALL YOUR HEALTHCARE PROVIDER IMMEDIATELY IF YOU THINK YOU MAY HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider before using any of our outstanding products to make sure they are right for you and your condition or if you have any questions regarding a medical condition. Always see your doctor for a proper diagnosis as there are often many injuries and conditions (some very serious) that could be the cause of your pain.
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