LPFL Anatomy¶
This section describes the lateral patellofemoral ligament (LPFL) anatomy, including the femoral and patellar insertion sites.
General Description¶
The lateral patellofemoral ligament is located in the deep retinacular layer. It is attached to the lateral patella as its widest part and anchored to the lateral femoral epicondyle with fan-like expansions [CZE+17].
- Femoral insertion: The LPFL originated, on average, 2.6 mm distal (range, 13.1 mm proximal to 11.4 mm distal) and 10.8 mm anterior (range, 7.3 mm posterior to 14.9 mm anterior) to the lateral epicondyle. Overall, the absolute distance (Fig. 30) from the epicondyle was 14.5 mm (range, 10.6-20.6 mm). The average width of the femoral insertion is 11.7 mm (range, 9-13.9 mm) [SDW+17].
- Patellar insertion: The LPFL insertion on to the patella is about 45% (range, 23.7%-58.4%) of its lateral articular surface and is in the middle third of the lateral patella. The average width of patellar insertion is 14.3 mm (range, 8.1-16.8 mm) [SDW+17].
- Length: 23.2 mm (range, 12.4-40 mm) [CZE+17].

Fig. 28 The lateral patellofemoral ligament (LPFL) [noa].

Fig. 29 LPFL outlined in a cadaveric specimen. (A) After disection, the patella is reflected laterally providing an intra-articular view of the LPFL (outlined in black). (B) Lateral image of the knee with the LPFL outlined in black [SDW+17].

Fig. 30 Image showing the absolute distance (black double headed row) from the center of LPFL femoral insertion to the tip of the lateral epicondyle. In this case the femoral attachment was distal and anterior to the lateral epicondyle [SDW+17].
[noa] | Patellofemoral Joint. URL: https://www.physio-pedia.com/Patellofemoral_Joint. |
[CZE+17] | (1, 2) Sercan Capkin, Gulsah Zeybek, Ipek Ergur, Can Kosay, and Amac Kiray. An anatomic study of the lateral patellofemoral ligament. Acta Orthopaedica et Traumatologica Turcica, 51(1):73–76, January 2017. URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1017995X16300220, doi:10.1016/j.aott.2016.07.009. |
[SDW+17] | (1, 2, 3, 4) Kalpit N. Shah, Steven F. DeFroda, James Kristopher Ware, Sarath C. Koruprolu, and Brett D. Owens. Lateral Patellofemoral Ligament: An Anatomic Study. Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine, December 2017. URL: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5718311/, doi:10.1177/2325967117741439. |