Knee MRI anatomy

Menisci and cartilage

Start with the medial and lateral menisci: on sagittal images they appear as two dark triangles — the anterior and posterior horns — that should be smooth and uniformly low in signal. Follow them onto the coronal plane, where the body of each meniscus and the meniscal roots are seen. Then assess the articular cartilage over the femoral condyles, the tibial plateau and behind the patella, judging its thickness and continuity. These are the structures most knee studies turn on, so getting fluent with their normal appearance comes first.

Ligaments

The cruciate ligaments are read on the sagittal plane: the anterior cruciate runs obliquely from the tibia up to the lateral femoral condyle and is normally taut and straight, while the posterior cruciate forms a smooth dark arc behind it. The collateral ligaments are best seen on coronals — the medial collateral as a stripe along the inner joint line, the lateral (fibular) collateral running to the fibular head with the biceps femoris. Knowing each ligament's normal course and signal is the key to reading the knee with confidence.

Tendons and the extensor mechanism

Complete the study with the extensor mechanism — the quadriceps tendon inserting on the patella and the patellar tendon running down to the tibial tuberosity — plus the popliteus and the tendons around the joint. Behind the knee, identify the popliteal vessels and the neurovascular bundle. Naming these on real images, over and over, is what turns slow recognition into the instant recall you need when reading a case or sitting an exam.

Keep practising by region

Move through the rest of imaging anatomy one region at a time — brain and body CT, cardiac and musculoskeletal MRI — and let each explanation fix the structure in memory.