the_knee

The knee joint is made up of three bones, four ligaments, and two different types of cartilage. The main parts of the knee are:

FEMUR (thigh bone): At the knee joint, this is the rounded top part of the joint divided into the inner, medial, condyle and the outer, lateral condyle.

TIBIA (shin bone): At the knee joint, this is the cup like bottom part of the joint again divided into the inner, medial plateau and the outer, lateral plateau.

PATELLA (knee cap): This is the small bone in front of the knee that rides in a special groove called a Trochlea located in front of the Femur.

ARTICULAR CARTILAGE: This type of cartilage covers the ends of all the bones at the joint. This cartilage enables a smooth movement and acts as a protective substance to prevent the bones from rubbing against each other. This substance is so efficient that a healthy joint is more slippery than ice sliding on ice.

MENISCUS CARTILAGE: This is the other type of knee cartilage. These are C-shaped pads found between the femur and tibia (thigh and shin bones at the knee joint). There is one on each side of the knee, the inner or medial and the outer or lateral. They serve to cushion the joint and act as shock absorbers.

Knees are designed to withstand the pressures of a lifetime of walking, running, sitting, and standing. But in many cases, the joint's delicate balance is disturbed. An injury may cause the meniscus to tear, or may give rise to defects in the articular cartilage. An injury is not limited to major trauma. It can occur with normal daily activities such as simple squatting or repetitive injury such as over training. Other activity or even incorrect weight training, especially in the young athlete can cause a lifetime of problems. Over time, small defects in the cartilage can worsen, leading to more wide spread damage and, eventually, the pain and disability of arthritis. This type of arthritis is called Osteoarthritis.