Your knees are constantly under pressure, whether from holding up your body weight, or enduring the jolt from exercises involving running or jumping. To survive the constant stress and still provide a range of motion, your knees must rely on a wide range of tissues including muscles, ligaments and tendons. One of the major ligaments your knee depends on is the medial collateral ligament, more commonly referred to as your MCL.
Location
The MCL is located between your femur, also known as the thigh bone, and your tibia, also commonly referred to as your shin bone. The MCL is made up of two parts. The inner section is deeper in the knee and connects to the joint margins and cartilage meniscus. The second is more superficial and connects higher on the femur to lower down on the surface of the tibia.
Purpose
The MCL plays an integral role in the stability of the knee, especially in regard to valgus instability, which is the abnormal outward turning of your bones. The MCL works to resist the forces applied to the outer surface of your knees, such as a blow to the knee during sport or a fall. The MCL is also important for keeping your shin bone in place. Without the MCL, applied outside forces would make the inner portion of your knee joint widen under the stress, causing valgus instability.
Injuries
The location of the MCL makes it a high risk area for injury. These occur when the knee experiences an impact while it slightly bent, suggests the Sports Injury Clinic website. The impact on the knee causes the interior ligament to stretch, causing a sprain. If enough force is applied to the knee, the ligament fibers can actually partially or fully tear, resulting in a serious MCL injury which may require surgery.
Injury Treatment
When an MCL injury occurs, there are several ways that treatment can be given. For mild ligament injuries, simply following the rules of the RICE method is enough for the area to heal itself. The RICE method (rest, ice, compression, elevation) includes resting the injury, icing the area to reduce inflammation, placing compression on the area as needed, and elevating the knee to a level above the heart. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications can also help treat pain and reduce swelling. For more serious MCL injuries, medical attention is needed to give a wider range of treatment options, after the area has been examined and X-rayed.
