• CONTEXT
    • Optimal rehabilitation after meniscal repair remains controversial.
  • OBJECTIVE
    • To review the current literature on weightbearing status after meniscal repairs and to provide evidence-based recommendations for postoperative rehabilitation.
  • DATA SOURCES
    • MEDLINE (January 1, 1993 to July 1, 2014) and Embase (January 1, 1993 to July 1, 2014) were queried with use of the terms meniscus OR/AND repair AND rehabilitation.
  • STUDY SELECTION
    • Included studies were those with levels of evidence 1 through 4, with minimum 2 years follow-up and in an English publication.
  • STUDY DESIGN
    • Systematic review.
  • LEVEL OF EVIDENCE
    • Level 4.
  • DATA EXTRACTION
    • Demographics and clinical and radiographic outcomes of meniscus repair at a minimum of 2 years follow-up were extracted.
  • RESULTS
    • Successful clinical outcomes ranged from 70% to 94% with conservative rehabilitation. More recent studies using an accelerated rehabilitation protocol with full weightbearing and early range of motion reported 64% to 96% good results.
  • CONCLUSION
    • Outcomes after both conservative (restricted weightbearing) protocols and accelerated rehabilitation (immediate weightbearing) yielded similar good to excellent results; however, lack of similar objective criteria and consistency among surgical techniques and existing studies makes direct comparison difficult.