Question

A football player had twist of the knee and ankle, clinically no bony injury was appreciated. Examiner is doing the test as shown her. Which test is this?

• A. Ant drawer for acl
• B. Post drawer pcl
• C. Mc murray
• D. Lachman

Hint:

Knee held at only 20–30 degrees while pulling the tibia forward = the most sensitive ACL test, not the 90-degree drawer.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1: Read the clinical photo. The examiner is shown holding the patient's knee flexed to about 20-30 degrees, with one hand stabilising the lower thigh and the other gripping the upper calf to pull the tibia forward. This hand position with the knee in slight flexion is characteristic of the Lachman test.

Step 2: What the Lachman test assesses. The Lachman test is the most sensitive clinical test for an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear. With the knee at 20-30 degrees flexion, the examiner pulls the tibia anteriorly; excessive anterior translation with a soft/absent endpoint indicates ACL deficiency.

Step 3: Why option D (Lachman) is correct. A twisting injury of the knee in a footballer that tears the ACL is examined with the knee in only slight (20-30 degree) flexion as shown - this is the Lachman position, more reliable than the anterior drawer because the hamstrings are relaxed.

Step 4: Why the other options are wrong. The anterior drawer test for the ACL (option A) is done with the knee flexed to 90 degrees and the foot fixed by the examiner sitting on it - not the position shown. The posterior drawer test for the PCL (option B) is also at 90 degrees but pushes the tibia backward. McMurray's test (option C) is for meniscal tears and involves rotating the tibia while extending the flexed knee, not an anteroposterior pull near full extension.

Final answer: D (Lachman).