Posterior meniscotibial ligament (Medial meniscus)
Ligamentum meniscotibiale posterius (Meniscus medialis)
The fibrous root that anchors the back end of the medial meniscus to the posterior intercondylar area of the tibia.
At a glance
- English
- Posterior meniscotibial ligament (Medial meniscus)
- Latin (TA2)
- Ligamentum meniscotibiale posterius (Meniscus medialis)
- System
- Ligament
- Region
- Lower limb
- Side
- Paired, left and right
About the posterior meniscotibial ligament (medial meniscus)
The medial meniscus is widest at its posterior horn, which carries much of the load on the medial side of the knee. This horn is fixed to the tibia by the posterior meniscotibial ligament, a root attached in the posterior intercondylar area, between the attachment of the posterior horn of the lateral meniscus in front and the tibial attachment of the posterior cruciate ligament behind.
Because the medial meniscus is also bound along its outer edge to the joint capsule and the deep part of the tibial collateral ligament, it has little freedom to move. The posterior horn and its root are therefore squeezed between femur and tibia when the knee is deeply bent, as in squatting, and this is the part of the meniscus most often torn.
Tears of the posterior medial root are a recognised cause of sudden knee pain in middle-aged and older people, often after a minor movement such as rising from a squat, and sometimes with a pop felt at the back of the knee. Without its root the meniscus is pushed out of the joint and the medial compartment is loaded as though the meniscus had been removed. This can lead to rapid wear of the joint cartilage and to an insufficiency fracture beneath the cartilage of the medial femoral condyle. Repair aims to restore the anchor and so the hoop function of the meniscus.
Attachments and function
- Attaches from
- Posterior horn of the medial meniscus.
- Attaches to
- Posterior intercondylar area of the tibia, between the posterior root of the lateral meniscus and the attachment of the PCL.
- Function
- Anchors the posterior horn of the medial meniscus, keeping the meniscus in the joint and maintaining hoop tension.
- Nerve supply
- Articular branches to the knee from the tibial, common fibular, femoral and obturator nerves.
- Blood supply
- Genicular branches of the popliteal artery, which supply the attachments of the meniscal horns.
Anthromica
See the posterior meniscotibial ligament (medial meniscus) where it really sits, with every layer of the body around it.
- Every layer, one body. Peel from muscle to bone, nerve, vessel and organ, and turn it any way.
- English and Latin. Every structure named the way your exam names it.
- Quiz until it sticks. Short drills on the structures you keep missing.
Free to start. No card.
