Surgery versus Physical Therapy for Meniscal Tear and Osteoarthritis

To the Editor: Katz et al. (May 2 issue)(1) assessed functional outcomes of meniscectomy versus physical therapy in patients with a meniscal tear and osteoarthritis. The primary outcome was the change in the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) physical-function score, and a secondary outcome was pain. But in efforts to assess the benefits of an intervention aimed at restoring meniscal function, more specific tools for meniscectomy, such as the Lysholm score(2) or the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) score,(3) would appear to have been more appropriate. Second, osteoarthritis was defined according to the radiography-based criteria of Kellgren ...