Knee Anatomy

Your knee is an engineering marvel, an intricate combination of bones, muscles, tendons, ligaments and soft tissue. The largest joint in your body, the knee is the juncture of your thigh bone (femur) and shin bone (tibia). The two are connected to each other and to the front-facing kneecap (patella) by a complex network of muscle and connective tissue.

Although the knee is described as a "hinge joint," that image is a little misleading. The bones don't actually interlock with each other, but instead meet end-to-end, buffered by a cushion of smooth cartilage. An oily fluid (called synovial fluid) lubricates the joint surfaces to help keep them friction-free. Ligaments and muscles control the joint's main motions, flexion (bending) and extension (straightening).

Next: Causes of Knee Pain

Wright's knee implants are manufactured to fit a wide range of different sized anatomy. In fact, we even have a customs department dedicated to adapting implants to either very small or very large patient anatomy. Wright constantly strives to understand patient and surgeon needs in order to design implants that fit the patient's disease state, perform as closely as possible to the natural knee, and wear well -- all to help patients take back their active lifestyles.