Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2022 Sep;14(9):2391-2395.
doi: 10.1111/os.13377. Epub 2022 Aug 1.

Symptomatic Complete Discoid Medial Meniscus Completely Coalesced with the Anterior Cruciate Ligament: A Case Report and Literature Review

Guorong Jin  1 , Tong Xin  2 , Zheng Weng  1 , Yun Zhu  1 , Hao Qiu  1 , Dun Liu  1 , Shimou Chen  1 , Jiangtao Dong  3 , Fang Huang  4 , Yu Chen  1
Affiliations
Review

Symptomatic Complete Discoid Medial Meniscus Completely Coalesced with the Anterior Cruciate Ligament: A Case Report and Literature Review

Guorong Jin et al. Orthop Surg. 2022 Sep.

Abstract

Background: Complete discoid medial meniscus is an extremely rare abnormality of the knee joint whose meniscus has a discoid shape rather than a normal semilunar one. Several medial meniscus anomalies including anomalous insertion have been reported in the literature. This report presents a rare case of symptomatic complete discoid medial meniscus whose anterolateral (apical) portion was completely coalesced with the ACL. MRI, radiographic, and arthroscopic findings in the medial compartment are to be submitted.

Case presentation: A 29-year-old male presented with intermittent pain and swelling of the right knee for 2 years. Based on radiographic, MRI, and physical examination findings, he was diagnosed with discoid medial meniscus tears. Arthroscopic saucerization was performed for the torn discoid medial meniscus of the right knee. Arthroscopic examination revealed a complete discoid medial meniscus and the anterolateral (apical) portion of which was completely coalesced with the ACL. Careful Probing of the meniscal surface revealed there was a longitudinal tear extending from the tibial spine to the midportion of the meniscus. Arthroscopic saucerization of the discoid meniscus was performed after closely cutting the meniscus around the ACL. The patient reported no symptoms, and he had returned to his daily and sports activities, including football, basketball, and jogging, at the 12-month follow-up.

Conclusion: Complete discoid medial meniscus is an extremely rare abnormality, and this case presents the third complete discoid medial meniscus whose anterolateral (apical) portion was completely coalesced with the ACL. The current case we present strongly supports the hypothesis that ACL and meniscus were differentiated from the same mesenchyme.

Keywords: Anterior cruciate ligament; Arthroscopy; Case report; Discoid medial meniscus.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Standing anteroposterior radiographs of both knees. Radiography showed widened medial joint spaces of the right knee
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
The anterolateral portion of the meniscus was completely coalesced with the anterior cruciate ligament, yellow arrow indicates the tear of meniscus
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Schematic diagram and arthroscopic image of discoid medial meniscus completely coalesced with the ACL. (A) Schematic diagram of discoid medial meniscus completely coalesced with the ACL. (B) Arthroscopic image of discoid medial meniscus completely coalesced with the ACL. (C) Longitudinal tear of medial meniscus. (D) Medial meniscus and ACL after saucerization of discoid meniscus
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Young RB. The external semilunar cartilage as a complete disc. Mem. Memo Anat. 1889;1:179–80.
    1. Cave EF, Staples OS. Congenital discoid meniscus as cause of internal derangement of the knee. Am J Surg. 1941;54(2):371–6.
    1. Yang SJ, Zhang MZ, Li J, Xue Y, Chen G. A reliable, ultrasound‐based method for the diagnosis of discoid lateral meniscus. Arthroscopy. 2021;37(3):882–90. - PubMed
    1. Li Z, Fan W, Dai Z, Zhao H, Liao Y, Lei Y, et al. Widening of the popliteal hiatus on sagittal MRI view plays a critical role in the mechanical signs of discoid lateral meniscus. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 2021;29(9):2843–50. - PubMed
    1. Xu Z, Chen D, Shi D, Dai J, Yao Y, Jiang Q. Evaluation of posterior lateral femoral condylar hypoplasia using axial MRI images in patients with complete discoid meniscus. Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc. 2016;24(3):909–14. - PubMed