Structure
The medial patellar retinaculum is a fibrous expansion comprising of superficial and deep layers (Starok et al., 1997).
The superficial layer refers to a confluence of fascia which arises from several sources, including the lowest fibers of the vastus medialis muscle, the vastus medialis oblique tendon, sartorius, and the medial collateral ligament.
The deep layer has contributions from three distinct fascial thickenings. The largest contribution is from the medial patellofemoral ligament, which extends from the adductor tubercle on the femoral condyle to medial patellar margin, where its fibers fuse with the vastus medialis oblique tendon. An additional and important contribution arise from meniscopatellar and patellotibial ligaments. The former extends from the patellar margin to the medial meniscus, while the latter extends from patellar margin to the anteromedial aspect of the tibia.
Related parts of the anatomy
Function
The medial patellar retinaculum is an important stabilizer of the patella and resists lateral patellar displacement.
References
Starok, M., Lenchik, L., Trudell, D. and Resnick, D. (1997) 'Normal patellar retinaculum: MR and sonographic imaging with cadaveric correlation', AJR Am J Roentgenol, 168(6), pp. 1493-9.
