Aligament is a type offibrous connective tissue in the body that connectsbones to other bones. It also connectsflight feathers to bones, in dinosaurs and birds. All 30,000 species ofamniotes (land animals with internal bones) have ligaments.
It is also known asarticular ligament,articular larua,[1]fibrous ligament, ortrue ligament.
Ligaments are similar totendons andfasciae as they are all made ofconnective tissue.[2] The differences among them are in the connections that they make: ligaments connect one bone to another bone, tendons connect muscle to bone, and fasciae connect muscles to other muscles. These are all found in theskeletal system of thehuman body. Ligaments cannot usually be regenerated naturally; however, there areperiodontal ligament stem cells located near the periodontal ligament which are involved in the adult regeneration of periodontist ligament.
Capsular ligaments are part of thearticular capsule that surroundssynovial joints. They act as mechanical reinforcements. Extra-capsular ligaments join in harmony with the other ligaments and provide joint stability. Intra-capsular ligaments, which are much less common,[citation needed] also provide stability but permit a far larger range of motion.Cruciate ligaments are paired ligaments in the form of a cross.[3]
Ligaments areviscoelastic. They gradually strain when under tension and return to their original shape when the tension is removed. However, they cannot retain their original shape when extended past a certain point or for a prolonged period of time.[4] This is one reason whydislocated joints must be set as quickly as possible: if the ligaments lengthen too much, then the joint will be weakened, becoming prone to future dislocations.Athletes, gymnasts, dancers, and martial artists perform stretching exercises to lengthen their ligaments, making their joints more supple.
The termhypermobility refers to the characteristic of people with more-elastic ligaments, allowing their joints to stretch and contort further; this is sometimes still calleddouble-jointedness.
Hypermobile finger
The consequence of a broken ligament can be instability of the joint. Not all broken ligaments need surgery, but, if surgery is needed to stabilise the joint, the broken ligament can be repaired.Scar tissue may prevent this. If it is not possible to fix the broken ligament, other procedures such as theBrunelli procedure can correct the instability. Instability of a joint can over time lead to wear of the cartilage and eventually toosteoarthritis.
One of the most often torn ligaments in the body is theanterior cruciate ligament (ACL). The ACL is one of the ligaments crucial to knee stability and persons who tear their ACL often undergo reconstructive surgery, which can be done through a variety of techniques and materials. One of these techniques is the replacement of the ligament with an artificial material.Artificial ligaments are a synthetic material composed of a polymer, such as polyacrylonitrile fiber,polypropylene, PET (polyethylene terephthalate), or polyNaSS poly (sodium styrene sulfonate).[5]
