Studies included in the meta-analysis
| Study | Year | Country | Patient characteristics | Treatment arm, no. of patients and description of treatment* | Major outcome measures | OA inclusion | Loss to follow-up | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean age, yr | Male sex, % | Conservative | Surgical | ||||||
| Herrlin et al. (37) | 2007 | Sweden | 55 | 61 | 43 Standardized exercise program for 8 wk | 47 Arthroscopic meniscal débridement | KOOS, Lysholm Knee Scoring Scale, Tegner Activity Scale, VAS scores at 8 wk, 6 mo | Ahlbäck criteria grade 0–1 | NR |
| Herrlin et al. (38) | 2013 | Sweden | 55 | 60 | 49 Standardized exercise program for 8 wk | 47 Arthroscopic meniscal débridement | Lysholm Knee Scoring Scale, Tegner Activity Scale, VAS scores (at rest and with activity) at 24, 60 mo | Ahlbäck criteria grade 0–1 | C: 2/49 S: 2/47 |
| Katz et al. (39) | 2013 | United States | 58 | 43 | 169 Land-based, individualized physical therapy with progressive home exercise | 161 Arthroscopic meniscal débridement | WOMAC-pf, KOOS pain scale, SF-36 physical activity scores at 3, 6, 12 mo | Kellgren–Lawrence grade 0–3 | C: 2/169 S: 1/161 |
| Østerås et al. (42) | 2012 | Norway | 50 | 76 | 9 Exercise program 3 times/wk for 3 mo | 8 Arthroscopic meniscal débridement | KOOS, VAS, HAD scores, quadriceps muscle strength at 3 mo | Kellgren–Lawrence grade 0–2 | 0 |
| Sihvonen et al. (40) | 2013 | Finland | 52 | 61 | 76 Sham surgical procedure | 70 Arthroscopic meniscal débridement | Lysholm Knee Scoring Scale, WOMET, VAS, 15D, patient satisfaction scores at 2, 6, 12 mo | Kellgren–Lawrence grade 0–1 | 0 |
| Yim et al. (41) | 2013 | South Korea | 56 | 21 | 52 NSAIDs, 3 wk supervised physical exercise followed by 8 wk home exercise program | 50 Arthroscopic meniscal débridement | Lysholm Knee Scoring Scale, VAS, patient satisfaction, Tegner Activity Scale scores at 3, 6 mo, 1, 2 yr | Kellgren–Lawrence grade 0–1 | C: 2/54 S: 4/54 |
| Vermesan et al. (43) | 2013 | Romania | 58 | 23 | 60 knees Interarticular steroid injection | 60 knees Arthroscopic meniscal débridement | Oxford Knee Score at 1 mo, 1 yr | Kellgren–Lawrence grade 0–1 | 0 |
Note: 15D = a health-related quality-of-life scale made up of 15 dimensions on a scale of 0 (death) to 1 (full health), C = conservative treatment arm, HAD = Hospital Anxiety and Depression, KOOS = Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score, NR = not reported, NSAIDs = nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, OA = osteoarthritis, S = surgical treatment arm, SF-36 = Short Form 36, VAS = visual analogue scale, WOMAC-pf = Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index — physical function, WOMET = Western Ontario Meniscal Evaluation Tool.
↵* Conservative to surgical crossover: Herrlin et al., (37) NR; Herrlin et al., (38) 27%; Katz et al., (39) 30%; Østerås et al., (42) 0%; Sihvonen et al., (40) 7%; Yim et al., (41) NR; Vermesan et al., (43) 17%.