The intercondylar area is the separation between the medial and lateral condyle on the upper extremity of the

tibia The tibia (; ), also known as the shinbone or shankbone, is the larger, stronger, and anterior (frontal) of the two bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula, behind and to the outside of the tibia); it connects ...

. The

anterior Standard anatomical terms of location are used to unambiguously describe the anatomy of animals, including humans. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position pr ...

and

posterior cruciate ligament The posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) is a ligament in each knee of humans and various other animals. It works as a counterpart to the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). It connects the posterior intercondylar area of the tibia to the medial co ...

s and the menisci attach to the intercondylar area. The intercondyloid eminence is composed of the medial and lateral intercondylar tubercles, and divides the intercondylar area into an anterior and a posterior area.

Structure

Anterior area

The anterior intercondylar area (or anterior intercondyloid fossa) is an area on the

, a bone in the

lower leg The human leg, in the general word sense, is the entire lower limb of the human body, including the foot, thigh or sometimes even the hip or gluteal region. However, the definition in human anatomy refers only to the section of the lower lim ...

. Together with the posterior intercondylar area it makes up the intercondylar area. The intercondylar area is the separation between the medial and lateral condyle located toward the proximal portion of the tibia. The intercondylar eminence composed of the medial and lateral intercondylar tubercle divides the intercondylar area into anterior and posterior part. The anterior intercondylar area is the location where the

anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments (the other being the posterior cruciate ligament) in the human knee. The two ligaments are also called "cruciform" ligaments, as they are arranged in a crossed formatio ...

attaches to the

Intercondyloid eminence

The intercondyloid eminence, (intercondylar eminence or tibial spine), is a structure of the

. It lies between the articular facets of the proximal tibia, but nearer the posterior than the anterior aspect of the bone, surmounted on either side by a prominent tubercle, on to the sides of which the articular facets are prolonged. In front of and behind the intercondyloid eminence are rough depressions ( fossae, for the attachment of the

and

s and the menisci. Two

tubercle In anatomy, a tubercle (literally 'small tuber', Latin for 'lump') is any round nodule, small eminence, or warty outgrowth found on external or internal organs of a plant or an animal. In plants A tubercle is generally a wart-like projection ...

s emerge from the eminence: * The medial intercondylar tubercle is a protrusion on the medial condyle. * The lateral intercondylar tubercle is a protrusion on the lateral condyle. It can be involved in fractures.

Posterior area

Posteriorly, the medial condyle and lateral condyle are separated from each other by a shallow depression, the posterior intercondyloid fossa (or intercondylar area), which gives attachment to part of the

of the

knee In humans and other primates, the knee joins the thigh with the leg and consists of two joints: one between the femur and tibia (tibiofemoral joint), and one between the femur and patella (patellofemoral joint). It is the largest joint in the ...

References

{{Authority control Bones of the lower limb Tibia