Abstract
Objective Considerable attention has been paid to meniscotibial ligaments (MTLs), also known
as coronary ligaments, especially after the “Save the Meniscus” initiative gained
importance among knee surgeons. Technically challenging, the diagnosis and treatment
of ramp lesion show the importance of MTLs. These ligaments were discovered long ago,
but their contribution to knee stability has only recently been studied and still
lacks information. Thus, the aim of the present study was to describe step-by-step
an dissection technique of the medial MTL, efficient, reproducible and that may lead
to further research.
Method Twenty fresh cadaver knees were used, with no preference for sex or age. The knees
were dissected using the same technique standardized by our team. Each dissection
step was recorded digitally.
Results The medial MTL was found in all 20 knees studied using the aforementioned technique.
In our sample, the medial MTL exhibited an average length of 70.0 ± 13.4 mm and width
of 32.25 ± 3.09 mm, thickness of 35.3 ± 2.7 mm and weight of 0.672 ± 0.134 g. In all
the cases, the medial MTL originated proximally and deeply to the deep MTL in the
tibia.
Conclusion We describe a simple effective and reproducible medial MTL dissection technique that
makes it possible to identify the ligament over the entire medial extension of the
knee.
Keywords
ligaments - menisci, tibial - dissection
