Anatomy and Mechanics of the Patellofemoral Joint

Significant advances have been made in recent years in the understanding of the anatomy and biomechanics of the patellofemoral joint (PFJ). Some of these advances have provided an understanding quite different from what were recently commonly accepted notions. An accurate analysis of the PFJ can be expected to have a considerable impact on the treatment of patellofemoral pain. Controversies persist, nevertheless, and in this article we review some current findings and analyze their clinical implications. As an indication of future directions in PFJ research, we present some new results from our laboratory on the quantitative anatomy of the PFJ, using stereophotogram-metry.