Abstract
From 1976 to 1990, 19 patients (21 knees) under 15 years old received open total lateral meniscectomy in our department. Nine patients (10 knees) directly examined by us were reviewed retrospectively. The mean age of the patients (3 males and 6 females) at operation was 10.1 years (ranging from 4 to 15 years). Meniscus disorders mainly with flexion contracture of the knee included 6 complete discoid, 3 incomplete discoid and 1 semilunar type. Three of them had tear.
The mean follow-up period was 5 years and 7 months. The results were assessed by Kurosawa's clinical score and Appel's roentgenographic grading. The clinical score was 9.7 points on the affected knees and 9.8 points on the opposite knees. Preoperative roentgenographies showed grade 0 in all cases, and postoperatively 7 affected knees were grade I and other 3 knees were grade 0. On the other hand, one was grade I on the opposite side. Postoperative clinical results were satisfactory, but roentgenographically OA changes appeared from an early postoperative period.
