Physical Therapy vs. Meniscectomy in Osteoarthritis Patients with Meniscal Tears

In the previously published METEOR study (NEJM JW Gen Med May 1 2013 and N Engl J Med 2013; 368:1675), researchers randomized 350 patients with meniscal tears and mild-to-moderate osteoarthritis (OA) to physical therapy (PT) alone or meniscectomy followed by PT. Intent-to-treat analyses showed that physical function and pain improved equally in the two groups at 6 and 12 months; however, 30% of PT-alone patients had crossed over to surgery by 6 months, and another 5% had crossed over at 12 months.

The METEOR researchers now report 5-year outcomes in the same patient population. Standardized OA pain scores (the primary outcome) improved in both groups during the first 24 months and were stable at 24 to 60 months. Twenty-five patients (7%) und…