The knee anatomy
The knee is the joint between the thigh bone (femur), the lower leg (tibia) and the knee cap (patella).
The knee cap (patella) is situated at the front of the knee and is held in the extension apparatus of the knee (quadriceps muscle, knee cap, knee tendon). The part of the bone that articulates with another bone is covered with cartilage. This results in a cartilage cover on the thigh bone (femur), the shinbone (tibia) and the knee cap (patella). This cover is nice and smooth and only a few millimeters thick. It also enables a supple and smooth flexion and extension movement of the knee.
Between the thigh bone (femur) and the lower leg, there is a meniscus situated toward the inside aspect of the knee and one located on the outside aspect of the knee. So there are 2 C-shaped discs in every normal knee. Their function is to perfectly match the thigh bone with the lower leg. During the movements, the ligaments keep all structures in the right position. The 4 most important ligaments are the 2 cruciate ligaments (both anterior and posterior) in the knee and the 2 collateral ligaments located at the inner and outer sides of the knee joint.
