What is the patella?
The
patella (from the Latin, meaning “little plate”), also known as the
kneecap, is a small, triangular-shaped, sesamoid bone located within the tendon
of the quadriceps femoris, a group of muscles that straighten the knee. The
patella protects the knee and gives leverage to the muscles. One of the most
common running-related injuries, runner’s knee, is essentially an irritation of
the cartilage of the kneecap. Normal tracking (gliding) of the kneecap does not
occur, since the patella tracks laterally instead of up and down. The increased
pressure of abnormal tracking causes pain in this injury.
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