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Review of Meniscus Anatomy and Biomechanics

  • Meniscus (A Kyrch, Section Editor)
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Current Reviews in Musculoskeletal Medicine Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose of Review

Anatomic repair of meniscal pathology is critical for restoring native joint biomechanics and kinematics for patients who suffer from meniscal tears. The purpose of this review was to summarize the pertinent anatomy, biomechanics, and kinematics of the meniscus to guide surgeons during meniscal repair procedures.

Recent Findings

Over the past decade, there has been a growing trend to save the meniscus whenever possible. The goal of repair should be to recreate native anatomy as close as possible to recapitulate normal mechanics. Studies describing the quantitative and qualitative relationship of the meniscus roots, ligaments, and attachments are key in guiding any meniscus repair. This review summarizes these relationships, with particular emphasis on meniscal roots and other key attachments to the meniscus. The composition, embryology, vascularization, biomechanics, in vivo kinetics, and in vivo kinematics of the meniscus are also discussed in this review.

Summary

Meniscal tears can cause profound functional, biomechanical, and kinematic derangements within the knee joint leading to accelerated degeneration of the articular cartilage. A strong understanding of the quantitative and qualitative relationships of the meniscus and its attachments with key arthroscopic landmarks will allow a surgeon to anatomically repair meniscal pathology in order to restore native joint biomechanics.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Rush University Medical Center, 1611 W Harrison St., Chicago, IL, 60612, USA

    Enzo S. Mameri, Suhas P. Dasari, Luc M. Fortier, Fernando Gómez Verdejo, Safa Gursoy, Adam B. Yanke & Jorge Chahla

  2. Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, Escola Paulista de Medicina, Federal University of São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil

    Enzo S. Mameri

  3. Instituto Brasil de Tecnologias da Saúde, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

    Enzo S. Mameri

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  1. Enzo S. Mameri
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Correspondence to Jorge Chahla.

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Conflict of Interest

Dr. Jorge Chahla is a board member for AOSSM, Arthroscopy AANA, and ISAKOS and a paid consultant for Smith and Nephew, Arthrex, Conmed, and Ossur.

Dr. Adam Yanke is a paid consultant for Allosource, Conmed, JRF Ortho, and Olympus; an unpaid consultant for Smith and Nephew, Patient IQ, and Sparta Biomedical; and does research support for Arthrex, Organogenesis, and Vericel.

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Mameri, E.S., Dasari, S.P., Fortier, L.M. et al. Review of Meniscus Anatomy and Biomechanics. Curr Rev Musculoskelet Med 15, 323–335 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12178-022-09768-1

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