Tendons of the Knee

Authors

Affiliations

Nate Yomogida, B.S., SPT

Doctor of Physical Therapy

B.S. in Kinesiology

Chloë Kerstein, B.S., SPT

Doctor of Physical Therapy

B.A. in Neuroscience

Posterior Knee

There are 5 distinct tendons of the posterior knee:

1. Iliotibial band (/The Archive/Anatomy/Connective tissue/Tendon/Lower Extremity Tendons/iliotibial_band.html) (most lateral)
2. Biceps femoris long head
3. Semitendinosus
4. Gracilis
5. Sartorius (most medial)

Palpation

Postero-lateral tendons

1. Position patient in sidelying on contralateral side¹.
2. Ask patient to flex knee to 45°¹.
3. Biceps femoris long head tendon (BFLH) and semitendinosus tendon will be most prominent¹.

Note

To make these tendons more prominent, place your hand on the ankle to add an extension force so your partner can perform resisted knee flexion¹

1. Follow the BFLH tendon as it extends down to the head of the fibula¹.
2. Move laterally ~1 inch from the BFLH to palpate the IT band¹.

Posteromedial tendons

1. Position the patient in supine¹.
2. Abduct the patient’s leg so you can access the medial knee¹.
3. The most prominent tendon will be the slender semitendinosus tendon¹.
4. Move anteriorly from the semitend to palpate the equally slender gracilis tendon¹.
5. Anterior to the gracilis tendon is the long and skinny tendon of the sartorius¹.

Note

Although the sartorius’ tendon is long and skinny, it is wider relative to the gracilis tendon, which can cause it to be difficult to isolate¹.

1. If you follow all 3 of these tendons distally, they will merge into the pes anserine tendon which inserts onto Gerdy’s tubercle of the antero-medial aspect of the proximal tibia.

References

1.

Biel A. Trail Guide to the Body: A Hands-on Guide to Locating Muscles, Bones, and More. 6th ed. Books of Discovery; 2019.