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The Posterolateral Aspect of the Knee

Anatomy and Surgical Approach

Hughston Clinic, PC, Columbus, Georgia

Robert F. LaPrade, MD

Hughston Clinic, PC, Columbus, Georgia

Thirty cadaveric knees were dissected to obtain a de tailed understanding of the anatomic structures of the posterolateral aspect of the knee, and a dependable surgical approach to evaluate injuries to these struc tures was developed and used on 71 consecutive pa tients who were operated on for posterolateral knee injuries. Three fascial incisions and one lateral midcap sular incision were used to provide surgical access. The following individual anatomic structures were iden tified : the layers of the iliotibial tract, long and short heads of the biceps femoris muscle, fibular collateral ligament, midthird lateral capsular ligament, fabello fibular ligament, posterior arcuate ligament, popliteus muscle complex, lateral coronary ligament, and poste rior capsule. This study increased our understanding of the individual anatomic structures and the relationships between these components. The surgical approach provided for the evaluation of these anatomic struc tures should aid the surgeon in properly assessing the injuries before surgical repair. This information should also stimulate more anatomic, biomechanical, and clin ical studies of the posterolateral aspect of the knee.

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