Your Ligaments

A ligament is a strong band of tissue that connects ends of bones together at a joint. They act to limit the amount of movement that can occur at a joint, therefore they keep your joints stable.

If you tear a ligament in your body (sprain), the joint will become less stable. Ligaments need time to heal, and in the meantime you will have to be very careful with your joint so that you do not cause further damage.

If a ligament is torn in half, you will most likely require surgery to repair it.

The following picture outlines the ligaments found in your knee. The true name of each ligament and how it stabilizes your knee follows the picture.

• ACL - Anterior Cruciate Ligament, prevents forward movement of the lower leg on the thigh
• FCL - Capsule of Tibiofibular joint, prevents movement at the tibiofibular joint
• LCL - Lateral Collateral Ligament, prevents sideways movement of the lower leg on the thigh
• Ligament Patellae, keeps proper alignment of kneecap on knee joint, also attaches many the thigh muscles to the lower leg
• MCL - Medial Collateral Ligament, prevents sideways movement of the lower leg on the thigh
• Meniscus, shock absorber (decreases the pressure that goes through your knee when you walk/run/climb stairs etc.)
• PCL - Posterior Cruciate Ligament, prevents backward movement of the lower leg on the thigh