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Morphology of the femoral insertion of the lateral collateral ligament and popliteus tendon

  • Knee
  • Published:
Knee Surgery, Sports Traumatology, Arthroscopy Aims and scope

Abstract

Purpose

To clarify the femoral insertion of the lateral collateral ligament (LCL) and popliteus tendon (PT) and related osseous landmarks on three-dimensional images.

Methods

Twenty-six non-paired, formalin-fixed human cadaveric knees were evaluated in this study. Femoral insertion of the LCL and PT was identified and marked. Three-dimensional images were created, and the surface area, location, positional relationships, and morphology of the femoral insertion of the LCL, PT, and related osseous structures were analysed.

Results

The mean surface areas of the LCL and PT femoral insertions were 55.8 ± 25.0 and 52.5 ± 24.2 mm2, respectively. Variations in the positional relationships between the LCL and PT insertions (PT inserted parallel and posterior to the LCL insertion to the long axis of the femur) were observed. The lateral epicondyle and popliteal sulcus could be clearly identified as osseous landmarks on three-dimensional images in all knees. Most of the LCL was inserted postero-distal to the apex of the lateral epicondyle, and the PT was inserted at the anterior end of the popliteal sulcus in all knees.

Conclusion

We observed variation in the positional relationship between the femoral insertion of the LCL and PT. However, the relationships between their insertions and osseous landmarks were consistent. The findings of this study contribute to the understanding of the PLC osseous anatomy and should assist surgeons in performing PLC surgery with a more anatomic perspective.

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Abbreviations

PLC:

Postero-lateral corner

LCL:

Lateral collateral ligament

PT:

Popliteus tendon

PFL:

Popliteofibular ligament

PCL:

Posterior cruciate ligament

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Acknowledgments

The author wishes to thank Emeritus Professor Tadashi Shimamura from the Department of Orthopaedics of Iwate Medical University, and Professors Yoichi Sato and Jiro Hitomi from the Department of Anatomy of Iwate Medical University for their continuous support for this study. We also thank Mr. Masayoshi Kamata from the Department of Radiology of Iwate Medical University Hospital for his technical assistance in this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Iwate Medical University, 19-1 Uchimaru, Morioka, Iwate, 020-8505, Japan

    Sanjuro Takeda, Goro Tajima, Kotaro Fujino, Youichi Kamei, Moritaka Maruyama, Shuhei Kikuchi & Minoru Doita

  2. Department of Anatomy, Iwate Medical University, Morioka, Japan

    Jun Yan

Authors
  1. Sanjuro Takeda
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  2. Goro Tajima
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  3. Kotaro Fujino
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  4. Jun Yan
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  5. Youichi Kamei
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  6. Moritaka Maruyama
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  7. Shuhei Kikuchi
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  8. Minoru Doita
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Correspondence to Goro Tajima.

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Takeda, S., Tajima, G., Fujino, K. et al. Morphology of the femoral insertion of the lateral collateral ligament and popliteus tendon. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc 23, 3049–3054 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00167-014-3059-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00167-014-3059-5

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