Can Meniscal Healing Improve by Interventions in Adults: Systematic Review of Randomized-Controlled Trials

The purpose of this study was to perform a systematic review of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that report outcomes regarding meniscal healing, and to provide a summary on the healing potential of menisci and the effect of various interventions on this potential. Seven different studies reported evidence of meniscal healing after different interventions: six were on meniscal body while one was on ramp lesions. The investigated therapeutic interventions were surgical in four studies, percutaneous injections in two studies, and a postoperative rehabilitation regimen in one study. Positive results were reported for platelet-rich plasma augmentation, bone marrow venting procedure, allogenic mesenchymal stem cell injection, and free postoperative rehabilitation regimen. The literature on meniscal injuries may be expanding at a high rate, but the amount of high-quality evidence is limited. The included RCTs are heterogeneous by means of meniscal injury classification, diagnostic methods, therapeutic interventions, and outcome assessment. Certain interventions such as augmentation with platelet-rich plasma, bone marrow venting procedure, and postoperative free rehabilitation after surgical repair have shown improved results in increasing the healing potential of the meniscal tissue. However, current evidence is not strong enough to support routine use of any of these techniques, and more high-quality evidence is necessary.