ARTHROLOGY

ANALYZE THE DIFFERENT PARTS AND CLASSIFICATION

OF JOINTS.
INTRODUCTION
A joint is formed when two bones are
brought together and held in place by
supporting tissue.
Joints may have very little movement
such as joints between the bones in
the skull or they may have ranges of
movement such as the shoulder and
hip joints.
Joints are designed to provide
stability to the body during
weight bearing and motion.
HISTORY
The term syndesmologia was used in the Basel Nomina Anatomica (BNA) of 1895 for the
joints and ligaments. This was changed to arthrology in the Birmingham Revision of 1933
and back to the original in Paris in 1955.
At the Tokyo meeting of the International Nomenclature Committee, arthrologia was
adapted as the most appropriate heading and articulatio replaced junctura.
The sixth edition of Nomina Anatomica (1989), retained arthrologia and articulatio. It
should be noted that the discarded original term, syndesmologia, for all joints is similar
sounding to the term syndesmosis, which is used to denote one type of fibrous joint.
Nomina Anatomica Veterinaria (1983) adopted articulatio for all joints—fibrous,
cartilaginous, and synovial.
The term articulationes synoviales replaces the former terms diarthrosis and articulus. This
terminology was retained in the fifth edition of the Nomina Anatomica Veterinaria in 2005.
The primary functions of joints

Lubrication- cartilage sucks up

fluid like a sponge and
releases when compressed to Shock absorption- lessens
reduce friction. shock by distributing pressure
evenly across articular surface
To provide motion and
flexibility to the skeletal frame
JOINTS
CLASSIFICATION
1.STRUCTURAL
CLASSIFICATION
◦ BASED ON MATERIAL IN
JOINT

2. FUNCTIONAL
CLASSIFICATION
◦ BASED ON RANGE OF
MOTION
 STRUCTURAL CLASSIFICATION OF
JOINTS
a) Fibrous joints ((junctura fibrosa)
—formerly known as a synarthrosis
immobile joints, united by fibrous
tissue, may ossify with age. Contains no cavity
Three types are recognized:
1] Suture = [L. seam] undulating seams between
bones of the skull
2] Syndesmosis = bones joined by ligaments, e.g.,
[radius & ulna] and [tibia & fibula] ,it permits slight
movement
3] Gomphosis = tooth in an alveolus, united by
periodontal ligament
The amount of movement of these joints depends in
most cases on the length of fibers uniting the bones..
These bones are close together and have essentially
no movement.
Sutures play an important role in the young These temporary joints disappear with
animal, allowing for the growth of the skull ossification of the cartilage
through the extension of individual bones at
The few permanent synchondroses include the
their margins while proliferation of the
joint between the skull and hyoid apparatus
membrane continues.
which allows appreciable movement in some
Sutures are gradually eliminated when species.
ossification extends across the membrane
after it has ceased to grow.
This is a slow and uneven process that is not
complete even in the aged.
Most cartilaginous joints are known as synchondroses.
They include the joints between the epiphyses and
diaphyses of juvenile long bones and the corresponding
joints of the base of the skull.
Fibrous Joints
A suture (sutura) is a fibrous joint of the type that is confined largely to the flat bones of the skull.
Depending on the shape of the apposed edges, sutures are further divided into :
(1) serrated suture (sutura serrata), one that articulates by means of reciprocally alternating processes and depressions.
In the sutura serrata the edges of the bones are serrated like the teeth of a fine saw, as between the two portions of the frontal bone.
Serrate sutures are found where stable noncompressible joints are needed, such as the parietooccipital and the interparietal unions.
(2) squamous suture (sutura squamosa), one that articulates by overlapping of reciprocally beveled edges.
A squamous suture (Sutura squamosa) is a fibrous joint that unites obliquely cut surfaces (beveled) and overlapping.
The parieto-temporal joint is a good example of the squamous suture.
◦ Where a slight degree of compressibility is advantageous, such as is required in the fetal cranium at birth, squamous sutures are found.
◦ Similarly, the frontonasal and frontomaxillary squamous sutures allow enough movement to absorb the shock of a blow that might otherwise
fracture the bones of the face
(3) plane suture (sutura plana), one in which the bones meet at an essentially right-angled edge or surface
◦ Examples of plane sutures are those of the ethmoid and those between most of the bones of the face
(4) foliate suture (sutura foliata), one in which the edge of one bone fits into a fissure or recess of an adjacent bone.
◦ Where extreme stability is desirable, foliate sutures are formed. The best example of this type is the zygomaticomaxillary suture
Fibrous Joints
When uneven jagged edges of bones interlock in a fibrous joint, as occurs in several skull
bones, it is called a schindylesis.
A syndesmosis is a fibrous joint with a considerable amount of intervening connective
tissue
The attachment of the hyoid apparatus to the petrous part of the temporal bone is an
example of a syndesmosis.
The implantation of a tooth in its alveolus by means of a fibrous union known as
a gomphosis, or articulatio dentoalveolaris.
This specialized type of fibrous joint is formed by the periodontal ligament
(periodontium), which attaches the cementum of the tooth to the alveolar bone of the
alveolus and permits slight movement.
 STRUCTURAL
CLASSIFICATION OF JOINTS
b) Cartilaginous joints —(junctura cartilaginea), formerly
known as an amphiarthrosis
immobile joints, united by cartilage, ossify with age.
Permits only limited movement, such as compression or
stretching.
Two types are recognized:
1] Synchondrosis/es = hyaline cartilage union, e.g., physis
2] Symphysis = [G. grow together] fibrocartilage union, e.g.,
pelvic symphysis; mandibular symphysis; (also, intervertebral
disk)
Synostosis. When the fibrous or cartilaginous tissues
separating adjacent bones in syndesmoses, synchondroses
and symphyses was replaced by bone as a result of either
aging or degenerative process.
Cartilaginous Joints
Hyaline cartilage joints, or primary joints, are usually temporary and represent
persistent parts of the fetal skeleton or secondary cartilage of growing bones. The
epiphysis of an immature long bone is united with the diaphysis by a cartilaginous
physeal plate.
◦ Similar transitory hyaline cartilage joints are typical of the sphenooccipital synchondrosis or
the union of an apophysis with the extremity (epiphysis) or body (diaphysis) of a long bone
such as with the femoral trochanters or the ulnar olecranon tubercle. The humeral tubercles
develop from the proximal epiphysis. Some hyaline cartilage joints, such as the costochondral
junctions, remain throughout life.
Fibrocartilaginous joints, or secondary joints.
The best examples of such joints are those of the pelvic symphysis, the intermandibular
articulation, sternebrae, and vertebral bodies. The fibrocartilage uniting these bones may
have an intervening plate of hyaline cartilage at each end. Occasionally these joints may
ossify, as do hyaline cartilage joints.
 STRUCTURAL
CLASSIFICATION OF JOINTS
c) Synovial joints —(junctura synovialis) formerly known as a diarthrosis or true joint
These joints are the most common type of joint, and they provide free movement between the bones they
link.
They are typical of nearly all limb joints, such as the knee, elbow, and wrist.
Their name comes from the lubricating substance (synovial fluid) that is within the joint cavity.
Tough, fibrous tissue encloses the area between the bone ends and is called the joint capsule.
Facilitates mobility.
-mobile joints, fibrous tissue enclosing a synovial cavity.
The synovial joints of the extremities permit the greatest degree of movement and are
most commonly involved in dislocations
Synovial Joints
All synovial joints (articulationes
synoviales) are characterized by:
Ø articular cavity (cavum articulare)
Ø joint capsule (capsula articularis)
including an outer fibrous layer and an
inner synovial membrane
Øsynovial fluid (synovia)
Øarticular cartilage (cartilago articularis).
Structure of Synovial Joints
The joint capsule is composed of an inner synovial membrane and an outer fibrous membrane.
◦ The synovial membrane (membrana synovialis) is a vascular connective tissue that lines the inner surface of the capsule
and is responsible for the production of synovial fluid.
◦ The synovial membrane does not cover the articular cartilage but blends with the periosteum as it reflects onto the bone.
◦ Joint capsules may arise postnatally if the need exists, and thus false joints often form following unreduced fractures.
◦ Synovial membrane covers all structures within a synovial joint except the articular cartilage and the contact surfaces of
fibrocartilaginous plates.
◦ Synovial membrane also forms sleeves around intraarticular ligaments and covers muscles, tendons, nerves, and vessels if
these cross the joint closely.
◦ Adipose tissue often fills the irregularities between articulating bones, and in some instances it is aspirated into or
squeezed out of the joint as the surfaces of the articulating bones part or come together during movement.
◦ Fat in such locations is covered by synovial membrane.
◦ A synovial fold (plica synovialis) is an extension of the synovial membrane; such folds usually contain fat.
◦ Around the periphery of some synovial joints the synovial membrane is in the form of numerous processes, or synovial
villi (villi synoviales). These are soft and velvety.
◦ The synovial membrane may extend beyond the fibrous layer and act as a bursa deep to a tendon or ligament, or may
even form a synovial sheath.
Structure of Synovial Joints
The synovial fluid (synovia) serves chiefly to lubricate the contact surfaces of synovial joints.
In all cases these surfaces are hyaline cartilage or fibrocartilage.
Fibrocartilage contains few blood vessels and nerves, and hyaline cartilage has neither. Therefore the synovial fluid serves the
additional function of transporting nutrient material to the hyaline cartilage and removing the waste metabolites from it.
Synovia also enables the wandering leukocytes to circulate in the joint cavity and phagocytize the products of the wear and
tear of the articular cartilage. In many joints there is little, if any, free synovia.
The average volume in the stifle joint of adult dogs of various sizes varies from 0.2 mL to 2 mL. The general health and
condition of the dog has a marked influence on the amount of synovia present in the joints.
Synovia is thought to be a dialysate, although mucin is probably produced by the fibroblasts of the synovial membrane
(Davies, 1944).
The chemical composition of synovia closely resembles that of tissue fluid. In addition to mucin, it contains salts, albumin, fat
droplets, and cellular debris.
The quantitative composition of synovia depends largely on the type of tissue underlying the surface fibroblasts and the degree
of vascularity of this tissue. Because of its mucin content, the synovia forms a viscous capillary film on the articular cartilage.
Structure of Synovial Joints
The fibrous membrane (membrana fibrosa) of a joint capsule is composed mainly of white
fibrous tissue containing yellow elastic fibers. It is also known as the capsular ligament. In
most joints the ligaments are thickenings of the fibrous portion of the joint capsule.
In some synovial joints the ligaments appear to be quite separate from the fibrous capsular ligament,
such as the patellar ligament of the stifle joint. Maybe this is reason to consider the patellar ligament to
be the tendon of insertion of the quadriceps muscle with a sesamoid (the patella) associated with this
insertion.
On the other hand, the patellar ligament can be considered to be a development of the fibrous layer of
the stifle joint capsule along with the extensive fat pad associated with it.
In those joints where great movement occurs in a single plane the fibrous membrane is
usually thin and loose on the flexor and extensor surfaces, and thick on the sides of the bone
that move the least. Such thickenings of the fibrous layer are known as collateral
ligaments (ligg. collateralia) and are present to a greater or lesser degree in all hinge joints.
The fibrous membrane attaches at the margin of the articular cartilage, or at most 3 cm from
it, where it blends with the periosteum.
Structure of Synovial Joints
The articular cartilage (cartilago articularis) is usually hyaline cartilage.
It covers the articular surfaces of bones where its deepest part may be calcified.
It contains no nerves or blood vessels, although it is capable of some regeneration after
injury or partial removal (Bennett et al., 1932). It receives its nutrition from the synovia.
The articular cartilage varies in thickness in different joints and in different parts of the
same joint. It is thickest in young, healthy joints and in joints that bear considerable
weight. Its thickness in any particular joint is in direct proportion to the weight borne by
the joint, and it may atrophy from disuse.
Healthy articular cartilage is translucent, with a bluish sheen.
Elasticity and compressibility are necessary physical properties that it possesses.
This resiliency guards against fracture of bone by absorbing shock.
Synovial joint accessory structures
A meniscus (meniscus articularis), or disc (discus articularis), is a
complete or partial fibrocartilaginous plate that divides a joint
cavity into two parts.
Two menisci are found in the stifle joint, and neither is complete,
thus allowing all parts of the joint cavity to intercommunicate.
Menisci have a small blood and nerve supply and are capable of
regeneration (Dieterich, 1931).
Their principal function, according to MacConaill (1932), is “to
bring about the formation of wedge-shaped films of synovia in
relation to the weight-transmitting parts of joints in movement.”
An obvious function is the prevention of injury from
concussion.
The stifle and temporomandibular joints are the only synovial
joints in the dog that possess menisci, or discs.
Synovial joint accessory structures
•Fat pads
- between the fibrous & synovial layers produce synovial folds
that may protrude into the joint cavity
- covered by synovial membrane
-protect articular cartilages
vAct as packing material for joint filling in spaces left as joint
cavity changes shape
LIGAMENTS and TENDONS
A joints may also be accompanied by supporting structures like ligaments and tendons.
Ligaments are composed largely of long parallel or spiral collagenous fibers, but they also possess
yellow elastic fibers
Ligaments are an essential part of the dog’s skeletal joints because they bind the ends of bones
together to prevent dislocation and excessive movement that might cause breakage
Ligaments also support many internal organs, including the uterus, the bladder, the liver, and the
diaphragm.
Tendons- connective tissue bands that connect muscle to bone
 LIGAMENTS
Ligament- connective tissue bands that extend from bone to bone.
Infrascapular or intra-articular ligaments are found within joints and are surrounded by the synovial
membrane
• Cranial and caudal cruciate ligaments of the stifle
Extrascapular or the periarticular ligaments are located external to the joint capsule.
• Collateral ligaments lie on the medial and lateral aspects of a joint
• Dorsal, Palmar and Plantar lie in front and behind the joint and their fibers encircle the join to
strengthen and protect the capsule.
• Annular ligament encircles 4/5 of a circle the head of the radius stabilizing it in the
radial notch.
• Patellar ligament attaches the large thigh muscles to a point on the center front of the shin
bone (tibia)
Classification of Synovial Joints
Synovial joints may be classified according to
(1) the number of articulating surfaces involved,
(2) the shape or form of the articular surfaces, or
(3) the function of the joint (Barnett et al., 1961).
Classification of Synovial Joints
According to the number of articulating
surfaces
a) Simple joint = formed by two bones
is formed by two articular surfaces within an
articular capsule
e.g., shoulder joint
b) Compound joint = formed by more than two
bones,
When more than two articular surfaces are
enclosed within the same capsule, the joint is
compound.
e.g., elbow joint, carpal joint
The classification of synovial joints (Nomina
Anatomica Veterinaria, 2005) is based on the shape
or form of the articular surfaces
Seven basic types
1. A hinge joint (ginglymus) permits flexion and extension with a limited degree of rotation. The most
movable surface of a hinge joint is usually concave. Joints move only in their sagittal plane; uniaxial allowing
movements at right angles

An example is the elbow joint

2. A plane joint (articulatio plana) is one in which the articular surfaces are essentially flat. It
permits a slight gliding movement. An example is the costotransverse joint- cranial and caudal
articulations between vertebrae
3. A trochoid (articulatio trochoidea), or pivot joint, is one in which the chief movement is
around a longitudinal axis through the bones forming the joint. The median atlantoaxial joint
and the proximal radioulnar joint are examples of trochoid joints; a uniaxial (atlanto-axial joint)
4.A ball-and-socket joint (articulatio spheroidea) is formed by a convex hemispherical head
that fits into a shallow glenoid cavity (shoulder joint) or into a deep cotyloid cavity (hip joint).
5. A condylar joint (articulatio condylaris) resembles a hinge joint in its movement but differs in structure. The surfaces of
such a joint include rounded prominences, or condyles, that fit into reciprocal depressions or condyles on the adjacent
bone, resulting in two articular surfaces usually included in one articular capsule.
Examples of condylar joints include the temporomandibular joint and the stifle joint. The stifle joint is best classified as
a complex condylar joint because it possesses an intraarticular fibrocartilage that partially subdivides the intraarticular
cavity.
6. An ellipsoidal joint (articulatio ellipsoidea) is similar to a spheroidal joint. It is characterized by an
elongation of one surface at a right angle to the other, forming an ellipse. The reciprocal convex (male) and
concave (female) elongated surfaces of the antebrachiocarpal articulation form an ellipsoidal joint. It is a
biaxial joint . Can perform flexion,extension,abduction,adduction and small rotation (atlanto occipital joint)
7. A saddle joint (articulatio sellaris) is characterized by opposed surfaces, each of which is convex in one
direction and concave in the other, usually at right angles. When opposing joint surfaces are concavo-
convex, the main movements are also in planes that meet at right angles. The tarsocrural or interphalangeal
joints are examples of this type of articulation.
 Movements of Synovial Joints
Joint movements that are brought about by the contraction of muscles that cross the
joints are known as active movements.
Adduction is the term applied to moving an extremity
toward the median plane or a digit toward the axis of the
Those joint movements caused by gravity or secondarily by the movement of some limb.
other joint or by an external force are known as passive movements.
Synovial joints are capable of diverse movements. Abduction, or taking away, is the opposite movement.
Flexion, or folding, denotes moving two or more bones so that the angle between them Circumduction occurs when an extremity follows in the
becomes less than 180 degrees. curved plane of the surface of a cone.
When an animal “humps up,” it flexes its vertebral column.
Rotation is the movement of a part around its long axis.
Some parts of the vertebral column (the joints between the first few caudal vertebrae)
are normally in a state of flexion Pronation is a movement that tends to rotate an
Extension, or straightening, denotes movement by which the angle is increased to 180 extremity so that the dorsum is up.
degrees. It is readily seen that some joints, such as the metacarpophalangeal and
metatarsophalangeal joints, are in a resting state of overextension. This is also called
dorsal flexion. Supination a movement that tends to rotate an
extremity so that the palmar (volar) or plantar aspect
Other vertebra (the joints between the last few cervical vertebrae) are in a state of
overextension.
of the limb is up.
Flexion and extension occur in the sagittal plane unless the movement is specifically
stated to be otherwise (right or left lateral flexion of the vertebral column).
Articulations of the Vertebral Column and of the
Thorax;
Atlanto-Occipital and Atlanto-Axial Joints
TYPES OF CARTLAGINOUS JOINT
 JOINTS OF THE AXIAL SKELETON
Temporomandibular joint (articulatio temporomandibularis)
A condylar joint, with an articular disc or meniscus, that sits between the mandibular condyles and the mandibu
fossa of the temporal bones
The first movable joint in the axial skeleton is temporomandibular joint between the mandible (jaw bone ) and the tempo
bone of the skull
Condylar joint between the mandibular fossa of the zygomatic process of the squamous part of the temporal bone a
condylar/condyloid process of the mandible
ATLANTO-OCCIPITAL JOINT -between the skull
and first cervical vertebra is strictly a
ginglymus (hinge joint).
The only movements possible are flexion and
extension in the sagittal plane as in nodding
the head” yes”.

ATLANTO- AXIAL JOINTS is the best example

of a pivot joint, in which one segment rotates
around the long axis of another
INTERVERTEBRAL JOINTS
Intervertebral disc
Anulus fibrosus – outer circumferential
collagenous fibers
Nucleus pulposus – inner gelatinous core
COSTO-VERTEBRAL JOINTS
Articular surface of the head of the rib and
caudal costal fovea of the more cranial vertebrae
and cranial costal fovea of the more caudal
vertebrae with which the ribs head articulate.
Each ribs form two joints by head (costo-central)
and by tubercle (costo-transverse joint)

FUNCTION:
Hinge joint that together with the vertebrae
makes possible the variation of thoracic volume
in respiration.
The movement is very limited in the anterior part
of series of joints but considerable in the
posterior part
COSTO TRANSVERSE JOINT
JOINTS OF THE RIB TUBERCLE
Articular surfaces of the costal tubercle and
the costal fovea of the transverse process of
the same numbered (more caudal vertebrae

FUNCTION
HINGE JOINT
STERNO- COSTAL JOINT

Cartilaginous ends of the first to the eight ribs

and sternum
FUNCTION
Hinge joint
STERNAL SYNCHONDROSIS

Manubrium of the sternum of the body of the

sternum xiphoid process

FUNCTION
Increasingly rigid and immoveable
Joints of Hyoid Apparatus

•Tympanohyoid cartilage - skull (a syndesmosis joint)

•Interhyoid joints (synovial joints)
•Thyrohyoid bone - cranial cornu of thyroid cartilage (synovial joint)
The tympanohyoid cartilage articulates with the mastoid part of the petrous portion of
the temporal bone, forming the articulatio temporohyoidea.
This articulation is adjacent to the stylomastoid foramen.
JOINTS OF THE APPENDICULAR
SKELETON
JOINTS OF THE THORACIC LIMB
HUMERAL OR GLENOHUMERAL OR SHOULDER
JOINT

Type : Ball and socket joint

◦ Consists of glenoid cavity of the scapula and the head of the humerus
◦ The glenoid fossa on the scapula is deepened by the glenoid labrum

ROM:shoulder flexion (and extension) is not the same as limb flexion (and
extension). Limb flexion (i.e. protraction) involves shoulder extension

Supporting structures:[The biceps tendon lies over the cranial aspect of the
joint and is held against the humerus by the transverse humeral ligament
Glenohumeral ligaments are thickenings of the joint capsule, not true
ligaments
There are no other ligaments
The synovial sheath of the biceps brachii tendon is an extension of the joint
capsule[4]
Shoulder Joint Motion and Ranges

Joint Movement Normal ROM for Dogs

Shoulder Extension 30-40 degrees

Flexion 170 degrees

Abduction 40-50 degrees

Adduction 40-50 degrees

Medial rotation 40-50 degrees

Lateral rotation 40-50 degrees

ELBOW JOINT OR CUBITI
(HUMERORADIAL, HUMEROULNAR, PROXIMAL
RADIOULNAR)
Type[4]
• Hinge joint
• Consists of the humeral condyle, the radius
head and trochlear notch of the ulna
• Elbow joint capsule

•Ligaments[4]
• Medial and lateral collateral ligaments.
These limit rotation when the elbow is flexed
• Annular ligament of the radial head
nge of Motion and Ranges

Joint Movement Normal ROM for Dogs

Elbow Flexion 25-40 degrees

Extension 170 degrees

Hyper- or over-extension

Radioulnar Pronation 40-50 degrees

Supination 80-90 degrees

Carpal Joint
•Hinge joint •Carpal canal
• Formed by the accessory carpal bone (laterally),
•Radiocarpal (RC) - consists of the trochlear of the the palmar carpal ligament (cranially) and the
radius and carpals flexor retinaculum (palmar)
•Midcarpals (MC) - proximal and distal carpals • Structures passing through the carpal tunnel
include:
•Carpometacarpals (CMCs) - carpal bones (II-IV) • Tendons and synovial sheaths of the superficial and
deep digital flexor tendons
and metacarpals (II to IV) • Ulnar and median nerves
•Intercarpals (IC) - carpals of the same row • Arteries and veins

•Ligaments of the carpal joint

• Medial and lateral collateral ligaments
• Intercarpals
• Palmar carpal ligament (fibrocartilage)
• Flexor retinaculum
Carpus Joint Range of Motion and Ranges

Joint Movement Normal ROM for Dogs

Carpus Flexion 20-30 degrees
Hyper-extension 10-15 degrees
Radial or medial 15-20 degrees
deviation
Ulnar or lateral deviation 15-20 degrees
Joints of the pelvic limb
1. Sacro-iliac joint
Type:[4]Synchondrosis ( synovial joint) -
sacropelvic surface of ilium; Joint capsule
present
ROM:[4] Minimal as this joint is designed for
stability; Accessory movements = rotation
Supporting structures:[4]Dorsal and ventral
sacroiliac ligaments; Sacrotuberous
HIP JOINT (COXO-FEMORAL JOINT)
Type: Ball and socket; Femoral head and acetabulum of the ilium, ischium and pubis; A band of
fibrocartilage on the rim of the acetabulum deepens acetabulum
ROM: Flexion and extension; Minimal adduction and abduction
Supporting structures: Acetabular lip (fibrocartilage) continues as transverse ligament; Ligament
of the femoral head; Synovial structures and tendon sheaths: Large joint capsule, Internal
obturator
 STIFLE (KNEE JOINT)
Complex joint, combines sliding, gliding and rotation as the joint flexes and extends. This hind
joint in dogs is often the largest synovial joint in the body. The stifle joint joins three bones, the
femur, patella and tibia[2].
Type:[4] Hinge joint with two cartilages/menisci; Femur and tibia - femorotibial (condylar);
Femur and patella – femoropatellar (gliding joint)
ROM:[4] Flexion and extension; At the end of flexion, there is internal rotation; At the end of
extension, there is external rotatioN
Supporting structures:[4]
•Patellar ligament (patella is a sesamoid within the quadriceps tendon)
•Medial collateral ligament (fused with joint capsule and medial meniscus)
•Lateral collateral ligament (separated from lateral meniscus by popliteus tendon)
•Cranial cruciate ligament: Caudolateral femur to cranial tibial. Prevents anterior translation of the
tibial relative to the femur
•Caudal cruciate ligament: Craniomedial femur to caudal tibia. Prevents caudal translation of the tibial
relative to the femur
•Lateral meniscus has an extra ligament, called the meniscofemoral ligament
• Connects the caudal lateral meniscus to the femur
• Femoropatellar ligaments – lateral and medial
• Extend from epicondyles to patella
 HOCK (TARSAL)
Supporting structures of canine hock- medial and lateral collateral
ligaments
Connects the paw (talus and calcaneus bones) to the shin bones (tibia and
fibula). Held together by a collection of ligaments, located primarily on
the inner and outer sides of the joint
Type:[4] Tarsocrural joint (TCJ) - has the greatest movement; Proximal and
distal intertarsal joint; Tarsometatarsal joint; Intertarsal
ROM[4]: TCJ - Flexion and extension and lateral and rotatory accessory
movement; Others - small amount or translatory and rotatory ROM