Meniscus Injury Postoperative Standard Rehabilitation and Emerging Therapies

Meniscus injury is a common clinical injury to the knee joint, often as a result of sporting trauma or degenerative changes. Although the main treatment modality is arthroscopic surgery, postoperative complications are frequent including quadriceps atrophy, joint stiffness and persistent pain, and with time the high risk of post-traumatic osteoarthritis is also seen, which seriously decreases patient's physical function and quality of life. Standardized postoperative rehabilitation is necessary to link the surgical intervention, support the optimal meniscal healing and regain knee joint function. This article systematically reviews conventional postoperative rehabilitation strategies for meniscus injuries, based on the latest research from the foreign literature published in the past five years, focusing on two main rehabilitation methods—exercise therapy and auxiliary physical and pharmacological treatment, and summarizing the new and emerging therapy—biological repair and intelligent rehabilitation technology. Clinical value and benefit of each therapeutic approach is analyzed quantitatively. There is considerable heterogeneity across current clinical rehabilitation protocols and emerging therapies lack evidence-based support, are not well-standardized, and are costly to implement. Future research should be directed towards the development of individualized, standardized comprehensive rehabilitation programs that aim to maximize meniscal healing safety and maximize functional recovery, minimize risk for long-term joint degeneration, and give scientific guidance for meniscectomy post-rehabilitation.