I was really hoping that those Orthovisc injections were going to be the magic pill I needed to get back to running the way I want to (as in marathon training), but that was not in the cards. Since I had been given the green light by my PT to run, I started up slowly in my book but (too) quickly went up to ~55 miles a week. Almost right away my knee was hurting again but I kept going back to my PT telling me that I wasn’t going to make anything worse.
Well, things seemed to be getting worse and I decided to check back in with my Orthopedic doctor to see if he had any other tricks up his sleeve. I figured some sort of surgery was next and wasn’t quite ready to go there but I wanted to know what my options were.
I met with the Physician’s Assistant first and told him about the running I had been doing and how the injections hadn’t given me any relief. The doctor then came in and said that he cringed when I heard I had been running….uh oh! So apparently I should not have been running :(. He was very frank with me as to the difficulty in treating a cartilage tear and also the lack of any good, surgical options. The bottom line is that I cannot run (again!) and I need to keep working my PT to work on mobility and strengthening in the meantime. When I am able to run again, I need to start out VERY slowly and stop if I feel pain. There were lots of tears shed in the appointment and throughout the rest of the day. I have been dealing with this issue for more than a year now and it’s frustrating to not even see the light at the end of the tunnel yet.
But I am not giving up- I have been keeping my cardio up with the elliptical, bike and power yoga classes and have been strength training- specifically my hips and glutes. It’s really hard for me to work out indoors when the weather finally turns nice here in Seattle (we really wait a long time for it!) so I’m considering getting a road bike to at least be able to get outdoors (but dang! They are expensive!).
I also keep reminding myself that this is a great opportunity for me to tackle other big projects and things that I’ve been wanting to do. So I have…..but I’ll save that for another post.
Run Hard Play Harder 
Friend! Ugh! How frustration! I say go for the road bike! Nothing beats being outdoors and you can only cross train indoors for so long… Would love to see you!
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I feel you pain… literally. I’m a surfer who had to have a bilateral orthovisc in my knees. After the recommended days of rest, I started slowly, then hit the waves roaring. The first few recovery days were yukky. Then the next 2 weeks were amazing. Now, I’m about 5 weeks post and hurt constantly. When I bend down, it sounds like 2×4 boards snaping from across the room. I’m not sure Orthovisc was the right choice, but being less abrasive, it was the optimal one. I have a f/u next week and have low hopes at this point. I just want to surf! I’ll keep you in my thoughts and hope things get better for your. I look forward to seeing you in marathons in the future! Xoxo, Grom in CA.
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Grom, Thanks for your response! As sorry as I am to hear that you are dealing with a similar issue, I must say misery does love company ;-). Really, it’s just nice to know that someone else is in a similar position- at least we can compare notes going forward. Can I ask what your diagnosis was? I have a tear in the cartilage of my right knee. I am not able to run at all right now and it is really depressing…especially as the weather is getting nice in our area. I just bought a road bike so I can at least exercise outside. Now I just have to learn all the rules of the road ;-). Let me know how your follow up goes- I hope you get some answers and a path to recovery! Paige
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Grom, Thanks for your response! As sorry as I am to hear that you are dealing with a similar issue, I must say misery does love company ;-). Really, it’s just nice to know that someone else is in a similar position- at least we can compare notes going forward. Can I ask what your diagnosis was? I have a tear in the cartilage of my right knee. My doctor was very hopeful that the injections would solve everything, but currently I am not able to run and I’m in Physical Therapy. All I’ve been cleared to do is bike, so I just bought a road bike so I can at least exercise outside. Keep me posted on your follow up appointment- I hope you get some answers and a clear path to recovery. Best Wishes! Paige
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