Care for a cut off the joint, miss?
I forgot the other notable event of Friday, which consisted of visiting my doctor for the MRI report.

I didn't get to see the images, but apparently it is not a pretty picture. I do have a copy of the report, and it is full of editorial comments like "this young patient".

Things going on in this young patient's left knee include...
All sorts of chewing and damage to the meniscus -- the cushiony bit between the knee and the lower leg -- the highlight being a "very large displaced medial meniscal fragment, flipped into the medial gutter". It is big; 1.6cm by 1.3cm.

Complete (rather than partial, as per original diagnosis) tear of the anterior cruciate ligament, the infamous ACL.

Bone island and early osteophytes (osteoarthritis -- often associated with damaged joints).

Kneecap a mess. "Severe chondromalacia patella" in official terms, which means, essentially, "The cartilage cushion on the back of the kneecap is gone; the bone of the kneecap is all worn and horrid, and it's been grinding against the associated leg bones too, so now their cartilage is going." Yumma.

Sprain of the MC ligament, and "effusion", which means "lots of fluid puffing out the joint."

And what does this mean to me, and my hobbling progress through life? To my immense relief, the doctor didn't suggest surgery as a first option. Since my knee gives out only occasionally, he said that repair of the ACL is probably not necessary at the moment. And that weight-lifting is a good thing, strengthening the surrounding muscles.

His first suggestion is injections of synovial fluid straight into the knee, to juice it up and lubricate it. Yech, but the least invasive.

Next option is minor surgery -- not the ACL repair, but a scope and scraping of all the loose and torn bits of cartilage. He suspects, because of where the pain is when he pokes me, that most of the trouble is coming from the messed-up kneecap and the osteoarthritis. The synovial fluid would help with the arthritis, and the scraping would improve the kneecap situation.

Of course, naturally, synovial fluid injections aren't covered by OHIP. It's $400 for the series of three. Hurrah. (I hear OHIP doesn't even cover eye exams any more. Last I heard, being able to see was necessary... I wish our stupid government would either shit or get off the pot. Go for the full US paid health care model and damn the critics, or quit gutting our socialised medicine on the quiet and hoping no one notices until it's too late. Mind you, no one is noticing, are they? You cannot underestimate the apathy of our electorate, it would seem.)