الفهرس 
INTRODUCTIONOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
 |  | from | 100 |  |  |
| | | from | 100 | | |
Abstract
Disorders of the knee joint are the most common problems of athletes who often place the knee under high loads since the bony configuration provides little inherent stability. The soft tissues are required to withstand these high forces, often resulting in tissue overload and injury. Study of the anatomy of the knee joint, its intra-articular ligaments and their functions aid for proper diagnosis and treatment of conditions affecting the knee(1).
The knee joint is a synovial joint of a condyloid variety. The bony contour of the joint consists of three bones; the lower end of femur, the upper end of tibia and the patella articulating together in all positions of the joint. The joint can flex and extend like a hinge but a moderate range of rotation of the flexed joint can take place. During all the movements, the knee joint is adapted to be weight bearing and stable in all positions(2).
The bony framework of the knee:
The lower end of femur:
This end has two condyles (medial and lateral) continuous together anterioly where their articular surfaces form an inverted V-shaped surface of two limbs that fuse anteriorly to form trochlear surface for the patella. The surface is marked by a vertical trochlear groove at the junction of two condyles in which the ridge of the patella fits (Figure 1a). The surface expands on each side of the groove as the flanges of the trochlea where the lateral one is larger and extending upwards to a higher level than the medial one. Moreever, it projects forwards to a greater extent to counteract the patellar tendency to slip outwards. The two condyles are separated posteriorly by a deep gap called intercondylar notch which is limited from the popliteal surface by a transverse ridge called intercondylar line (Figure 1b)(2).