The intact meniscus and an artificial meniscus prosthesis both act as a shock absorber in the knee joint

From a clinical and biomechanical perspective, the meniscus has multiple different functions in the knee joint. This study demonstrated that the native meniscus and the meniscus prosthesis are both shock-absorbers, with the prosthesis performing better at lower impact energies. Meniscectomy reduces damping of the knee joint during cyclic loading, whereas the meniscus prosthesis has the capacity to largely restore the damping characteristics of the knee joint.