AJSM December 2014 Podcast: Effects of Knee Flexion Angle and Loading Conditions on the End-to-End Distance of the Posterior Cruciate Ligament: A Comparison of the Roles of the Anterolateral and Posteromedial Bundles

It is commonly accepted that the anterolateral (AL) bundle of the posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) is tight in flexion and that the posteromedial (PM) bundle is tight in extension. However, a recent in vivo study showed that both bundles were tight in extension. Both bundles of the PCL may serve a greater functional role in flexion than in extension. The PM bundle might be more important for the control of rotation than the AL bundle. Posterior translation at 90° of knee flexion could be the most stressful condition for both bundles of the PCL, which may have implications for an injury mechanism.   Click here to read the article.