Type II Medial Meniscus Root Repair With Peripheral Release for Addressing Meniscal Extrusion

Medial meniscal root tears are often disabling injuries that can occur in isolation during low-velocity, deep knee flexion maneuvers in middle-aged patients. The most common meniscal root tear pattern is a radial tear near the root attachment (type II). Root tears are often associated with meniscal extrusion, identified on magnetic resonance imaging. Relocation of the meniscal root to its anatomic center is a reported current difficulty faced by surgeons during surgical repair. However, this can be achieved via sufficient peripheral release of the posteromedial capsular attachment of the medial meniscus. The purpose of this Technical Note is to describe the authors' current surgical technique for medial meniscus root repair with a peripheral release for addressing meniscal extrusion. Classifications: level I (knee); level II (meniscus).