Recommendations for the diagnosis of traumatic meniscal injuries in athletes

It has always been difficult to develop a method of correctly evaluating kn ee injuries and, in turn, to devise the appropriate rehabilitation programm e. Flawless diagnosis of meniscal injury is necessary, considering the dive rse consequences of this injury for patients, and even more so in relation to athletes, bearing in mind the intensified physical demands on their bodi es. There is no doubt that an accurate and concise clinical evaluation of p atients with injuries to the knee is the basis for an exact diagnosis and s uccessful treatment. The use of noninvasive methods, such as magnetic reson ance imaging, in addition to clinical evaluation is recommended because of their high accuracy and negative predictive value. The use of invasive meth ods, such as arthroscopic operations, should be restricted to treatment, an d not be used for diagnosis.