Introduction to Clinical Medicine III (ICM3) Exam 1 Practice

The LCL resists varus stress at the knee, so to check its integrity you use a varus stress test. In this exam, with the patient supine and the knee mildly flexed, you stabilize the femur and apply a varus force to the tibia. A normal knee shows little lateral gapping and minimal pain. Increased lateral joint space or tenderness along the lateral collateral ligament indicates LCL injury. Performing the test at 0 degrees tests the LCL in the context of the posterolateral corner and cruciate ligaments as well, while at about 30 degrees of flexion the focus is more specifically on the LCL.