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Knee Research Paper

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The bones in the upper and lower leg of Human body are connected by complex pivotal hinge joint called knee. The upper and lower extremities are encompassed of cartilage, tendons and ligaments. There are two cartilage pads called menisci that diffuse the friction created at the tibial and femur joint. The main ligaments of the knee are Medial Collateral ligament (MCL), Lateral Collateral ligament (LCL), Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL), Anterolateral ligament (ALL), and Posterior Cruciate ligament (PCL). The knee is comprised of articular cartilage that is hyaline cartilage. Articular cartilage unlike most tissues, lack nerves, lymphatic and blood vessels. It is composed of a sparse distribution of chondrocytes that are highly …show more content…

These cells are extended fibrocytes and fibroblasts lying between the collagen fibers. They form the tendons by making a complex system of primary, secondary and tertiary fiber bundles. The soluble molecules of tropocollagen link with insoluble collagen molecules to form microfibrils. These microfibrils are later turned into collagen fibrils. The basic unit of tendon is made up of collagen a fiber which is formed by bunch of collagen fibrils. Endotendon, a connective tissue sheath, helps to bind these collagen fibers …show more content…

The excessive side to side movement of knee joint is prevented by LCL. The Medial Collateral ligament is located on the inside of the knee joint and spans the distance from the top of the tibia to the end of the femur. The MCL resists widening of the inside of the joint of the knee. There are wavy bundles of collagen fibers found in human anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) that are arranged in different directions. Fibroblasts are extended with short cytoplasmic processes and branches. The elastic system is comprised of both oxytalan and elastic fibers. The ACL is very different from other tendons and ligaments, with varied orientation of the bundles and complex structural organization. Thus, it provides a structure able to resist tensile strains and multi axial stresses enforced upon it. The histology of anterolateral ligament has been described as a structure in the lateral femoral condyle connected by lateral knee with the tibial plateau and lateral meniscus. The histological studies of ALL prove it to be a structure surrounded by synovium with a fibrous core. At the origin fibers are merged with the popliteus at its origin and with the lateral meniscus

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