Medial Meniscus Root Repair With Implantable Shock Absorber Placement: A Combined Technique for Early Partial Weightbearing

Abstract

Younger, working-age patients with early medial compartment arthritis are a unique patient population with limited treatment options, generally consisting of either an osteotomy or arthroplasty. Another surgical treatment option involves unloading the medial compartment with an implantable shock absorber, known as the MISHA Knee System (Moximed, Fremont, CA). One use of this implant is in the setting of medial meniscal root tears (MMRTs). MMRTs are important to address; left untreated, they can result in rapid degeneration of the medial tibiofemoral compartment with high rates of conversion to arthroplasty. Although MMRTs are important to address surgically, recovery can be difficult for the patient because they must adhere to 6 weeks of non-weightbearing. In this surgical technique, we describe combining an implantable shock absorber with a concomitant medial meniscal root repair to provide both protection of the medial tibiofemoral compartment and a faster return to weightbearing.