Compared to the shoulder and hip joints, in what way is the knee joint poorly pr

Question

Compared to the shoulder and hip joints, in what way is the knee joint poorly protected and thus especially vulnerable to injuries?

To receive full credit, you much fulfill ALL of the following criteria:
1. Uses appropriate grammar, punctuation and spelling.
2. Contrasts the anatomy of the hip to the knee.
3. Contrasts the anatomy of the shoulder to the knee.
4. Describes how the knee is more susceptible to injuries than the other two joints.
5. Includes information regarding joint movements.
6. Includes information regarding surrounding tissues.

Explanation / Answer

action of the joint

The hip, a joint meant primarily for load-bearing, needs to be stable above all else. The shoulder, on the other hand (bad pun intended), requires extraordinary mobility to perform its complex tasks. Both are ‘ball and socket’ type joints; yet with a deep socket that practically envelopes the ball of the thigh bone (femur),  the hip is as structurally stable as it gets. You won’t often hear of someone dislocating his/her hip, unless they’ve had the joint surgically replaced. On the other extreme, the shoulder has a very shallow socket into which the arm (humerus) fits, giving it about as much structural stability as a golf ball on a tee.

Clearly, no joint has complete stability or complete mobility; usually both are present to varying degrees. The notable standout is the knee which has no appreciable stability or mobility to brag about. Structurally, it’s just one bone (the femur, or thigh bone) sitting atop another one (the tibia, or shin bone). And in exchange for that lack of stability, all you get is a joint that does little more than move back and forth like a hinge. Frankly, it’s the joint we got gipped on. Other major joints fall somewhere in the middle of the spectrum.

Condition of muscles and tendons around a joint:  Muscles and tendons also serve to protect joints from excessive movement. Examples can be seen at one of the most mobile joints in the body, the shoulder. Here the extra mobility of the shoulder, due to the shallow socket and lack of bony congruence, requires additional support from the muscles and tendons around it. The shoulder joint gets this additional support from the rotator cuff muscles and their tendons. This group of muscles provides stability and protection to make up for the lack of ‘bony congruence’.

It’s important to note here that in order to stabilise and protect joints, muscles, tendons and ligaments need to be kept strong and healthy. When they are weak and or have been stretched beyond their normal limit, such as from poor weight lifting technique, their ability to perform these tasks is impeded and injury becomes increasingly likely.

shoulder joint:

   it allows more motion than any other joint.it is least stable.it is supported by skeletal muscles ,tendons and ligaments.

stability:

   weak stability is maintained by thin loose joint capsule.

hip joint:

   Head of the femur articulates with the acetabulum.

   good range of motion,but limited by deep socket and strong ligaments.stronger than shoulder ,but more limited range of motion.

satabily:

   acetabular labrum,ligamentum terus

knee joint:

it is a complicated joint.it is the largest and most complex joint of the body.three joints in one surrounded by a single joint cavity.Transfers weight from femur to tibia.

sl no joint name bones of the joint

action of the joint

1 shoulder humerus,scapula and clavicle flexion,extension,horizontal flexion,horizontal extension,abduction,rotation,elevation,depression,protraction, and retraction 2 hip femur and pelvis adduction and circumduction

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