The meniscofemoral ligaments of the knee.

The meniscofemoral ligaments (MFL) of the knee have both functional and clinical importance, but have been poorly described. We examined 42 human cadaver knees: there was at least one MFL in every joint and both ligaments were present in 27. The anterior MFL was present in the knees in all 18 males and in 17 of the 24 females. The posterior MFL was present in 16 males and 22 females. Measurement of the ligaments showed that they were of significant size. The mean midpoint width for the anterior MFL was 5.09 +/- 1.41 mm in males and 2.99 +/- 1.29 mm in females. The mean width of the posterior MFL was 5.48 +/- 2.13 mm in males and 3.79 +/- 2.56 mm in females. The average length of the anterior MFL was 27.09 +/- 2.15 mm in males and 24.38 +/- 3.39 mm in females, and the posterior MFL was 31.13 +/- 2.54 mm and 27.59 +/- 3.74 mm, respectively. There were anatomical variations in 16 (38%) knees (62.5% female, 37.5% male), more commonly in the posterior ligament. We conclude that the meniscofemoral ligaments are anatomically and probably functionally important structures in the human knee.