Meniscus

Meniscus
The word "meniscus" comes from the Greek and refers to a crescent-shaped structure. Today a meniscus is something that is shaped like a crescent moon or a croissant pastry. A meniscus can be an anatomic feature. For example, the medial meniscus of the knee is a crescent-shaped cartilage pad between the two joints formed by the femur (the thigh bone) and the tibia (the shin bone). The meniscus acts as a smooth surface for the joint to move on. The medial meniscus is toward the inner (medial) side of the knee joint, as indicated here
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1. SYN: m. lens. 2. [TA] A crescent-shaped intraarticular fibrocartilage found in certain joints. 3. A crescent-shaped fibrocartilaginous structure of the knee, the acromio- and sternoclavicular and the temporomandibular joints. [G. meniskos, crescent]
- articular m. SYN: m. lens.
- m. articularis SYN: m. lens.
- converging m. a convexoconcave lens in which the power of the convexity exceeds that of the concavity. SYN: positive m..
- diverging m. a convexoconcave lens in which the power of the concavity exceeds that of the convexity. SYN: negative m..
- lateral m. [TA] crescent-shaped intraarticular cartilage of the knee joint attached to the lateral border of the upper articular surface of the tibia, occupying the space surrounding the contacting surfaces of the femur and tibia. SYN: m. lateralis [TA], external semilunar fibrocartilage.
- m. lateralis [TA] SYN: lateral m..
- medial m. [TA] crescent-shaped intraarticular cartilage of the knee joint attached to the medial border of the upper articular surface of the tibia occupying the space surrounding the contacting surfaces of the femur and tibia. SYN: m. medialis [TA], falciform cartilage, internal semilunar fibrocartilage of knee joint.
- m. medialis [TA] SYN: medial m..
- negative m. SYN: diverging m..
- periscopic m. SYN: aplanatic lens.
- positive m. SYN: converging m..
- tactile m. a specialized tactile sensory nerve ending in the epidermis, characterized by a terminal cuplike expansion of an intraepidermal axon in contact with the base of a single modified keratinocyte. SYN: m. tactus, Merkel corpuscle, Merkel tactile cell, Merkel tactile disk, tactile disk.
- m. tactus SYN: tactile m..

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me·nis·cus mə-'nis-kəs n, pl me·nis·ci -'nis-.(k)ī, -.kē also me·nis·cus·es
1) a crescent or crescent-shaped body
2) a fibrous cartilage within a joint:
a) either of two crescent-shaped lamellae of fibrocartilage that border and partly cover the articulating surfaces of the tibia and femur at the knee: SEMILUNAR CARTILAGE: (1) one mostly between the lateral condyles of the tibia and femur called also external semilunar fibrocartilage, lateral meniscus, lateral semilunar cartilage (2) one mostly between the medial condyles of the tibia and femur called also internal semilunar fibrocartilage, medial meniscus, medial semilunar cartilage
b) a thin oval ligament of the temporomandibular joint that is situated between the condyle of the mandible and the mandibular fossa and separates the joint into two cavities
3) a concavo-convex lens
4) the curved upper surface of a liquid column that is concave when the containing walls are wetted by the liquid and convex when not

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n.
(in anatomy) a crescent-shaped structure, such as the fibrocartilaginous disc that divides the cavity of a synovial joint.

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me·nis·cus (mə-nisґkəs) gen. and pl. menisґci [L., from Gr. mēniskos, crescent] 1. a crescent-shaped structure appearing at the surface of a liquid column, as in a pipet or buret, made concave or convex by the influence of capillarity. 2. a crescent-shaped structure of the body. Often used alone to designate one of the menisci of the knee joint; see m. lateralis articulationis genus and m. medialis articulationis genus.

Medical dictionary. 2011.

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  • Meniscus — Me*nis cus, n.; pl. L. {Menisci} ( s[=i]), E. {Meniscuses}. [NL., from Gr. mhni skos, dim. of mh nh the moon.] 1. A crescent. [1913 Webster] 2. (Opt.) A lens convex on one side and concave on the other. [1913 Webster] 3. (Anat.) An interarticular …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • meniscus — crescent shaped body, 1690s in reference to lenses, c.1812 in reference to liquid surfaces, Mod.L. meniscus, from Gk. meniskos lunar crescent, dim. of mene moon (see MOON (Cf. moon) (n.)). Related: Meniscoid …   Etymology dictionary

  • Meniscus — (lat.), 1) ein kleiner Mond; 2) (Math.), so v.w. Lunula; 3) halbmondförmiger Knorpel in Gelenken, bes. dem Kiefergelenke. Daher Meniscatus, halbmondförmig …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • meniscus — ► NOUN (pl. menisci) 1) Physics the curved upper surface of a liquid in a tube. 2) a thin lens convex on one side and concave on the other. ORIGIN Greek m niskos crescent …   English terms dictionary

  • meniscus — [mə nis′kəs] n. pl. meniscuses or menisci [mi nis′ī΄] [ModL < Gr mēniskos, dim. of mēnē, the MOON] 1. a crescent or crescent shaped thing 2. a lens convex on one side and concave on the other: see LENS 3. fibrous cartilage within a joint, esp …   English World dictionary

  • Meniscus — For other uses, see Meniscus (anatomy), Lens (optics)#Types of simple lenses, and Meniscus Film Festival. A: The bottom of a concave meniscus. B: The top of a convex meniscus. The meniscus (plural: menisci, from the Greek for crescent ) is the… …   Wikipedia

  • meniscus —   n. (pl. ci ) crescent shaped object, especially cartilage of knee; concavo convex lens; curved surface of liquid in a tube.    ♦ meniscal,    ♦ meniscate,    ♦ meniscoid, a.    ♦ menisciform, a. shaped like meniscus.    ♦ meniscitis, n.… …   Dictionary of difficult words

  • meniscus — meniskinis lęšis statusas T sritis Standartizacija ir metrologija apibrėžtis Dviejų sferinių paviršių lęšis, iš kurių vienas paviršius yra išgaubtas, o kitas – įgaubtas. atitikmenys: angl. meniscus; meniscus lens vok. Meniskuslinse, f; Nullglas,… …   Penkiakalbis aiškinamasis metrologijos terminų žodynas

  • meniscus — meniskinis lęšis statusas T sritis fizika atitikmenys: angl. meniscus; meniscus lens vok. Meniskus, m; Meniskuslinse, f rus. линза в виде мениска, f; мениск, m; менисковая линза, f pranc. lentille en ménisque, f; ménisque, m …   Fizikos terminų žodynas

  • Meniscus — Aufbau des Kniegelenks Menisken des Kniegelenks des Menschen Als Meniskus bezeichnet man in der Anatomie einen scheibenförmigen (im Knie halbmondförmigen) Knorpel in ein …   Deutsch Wikipedia

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