![]() At home or at work, people could fall from a height and attempt to land on their feet. This commonly occurs in auto accidents when the flexed knee makes contact with the dashboard or in sports related injuries when the athlete lands from a jump and the knee “buckles”. The most common cause of a tibial plateau fracture is a valgus force with axial loading (force pushing outer knee inward). This can eventually become osteoarthritis. If the alignment of the plateau and the femoral condyles (distal end of the femur and upper part of the knee joint) is not proper the sheer and compressive forces developed with weight bearing activity can lead to “break down” of the cartilage. This alone makes the lateral tibial condyle more susceptible to injury. ![]() The normal alignment of the human knee is in a slight valgus position. The plateau is covered with hyaline (articular) cartilage and is subject to these forces. This weight-bearing force can become 7 times (or more) of a person’s body weight in certain activities. It forms the bottom portion of the knee joint and bears 100% of the body weight during activity when someone transitions to single leg stance. A fractured tibial plateau must be diagnosed and treated immediately to prevent future damage to the knee joint.Ĭommonly known as the shin bone, the tibia is located below or distal to the thigh bone or femur. The bone fracture also affects the knee joint and surrounding soft tissues (skin, muscle, nerves, blood vessels, and ligaments). The tibial plateau is the one of the biggest bones in the body, is the weight bearing bone in the lower leg, and directly affects the knee joint. ![]() Recovering from a tibial plateau fracture (upper shin bone) will impact day-to-day activity for an extended time. Recovering from any fractured bone takes time and requires some form of adaptation. ![]()
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