Facebook Twitter Instagram
    Trending
    • Interview with the Vice-Chancellor
    • Country Highlight: The Netherlands
    • If You’re Moving Back Home After Uni …
    • Jane Austen in Lockdown: How her six novels are more relevant than ever
    • All About … Period Poverty
    • My Veggie Journey: How not being strictly Vegetarian is OK
    • Watch with Pride: Your Top TV Picks this Pride Month
    • Globe Trotting on Screen: Your Guide to Summer 2021
    Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube Flickr
    Seren
    • News & Politics
      1. Local News
      2. UK News
      3. Uni News
      4. World News
      5. Politics
      6. Comment
      7. Business
      Featured

      SABB Election: The Full Result Breakdown

      By Emily ReadMarch 20, 20210
      Recent

      Interview with the Vice-Chancellor

      May 23, 2022

      Retro? Chip shortage may bring vintage tech to your car.

      May 6, 2021

      Manizha – the artist causing a stir as the Russian representative for Eurovision 2021:

      May 6, 2021
    • Arts & Culture
      1. Books
      2. Games
      3. Film
      4. Music
      5. TV
      6. Creative Corner
      Featured

      Bangor alumni podcast earns Hollywood cameo & BBC features

      By Amelia SmithMarch 7, 20210
      Recent

      Jane Austen in Lockdown: How her six novels are more relevant than ever

      July 7, 2021

      Watch with Pride: Your Top TV Picks this Pride Month

      May 17, 2021

      Globe Trotting on Screen: Your Guide to Summer 2021

      May 16, 2021
    • Lifestyle
      1. Fashion
      2. Food and Drink
      3. Social
      4. Health and Beauty
      5. Travel
      Featured

      Country Highlight: The Netherlands

      By Emily ShoultsMay 6, 20220
      Recent

      Country Highlight: The Netherlands

      May 6, 2022

      If You’re Moving Back Home After Uni …

      August 3, 2021

      All About … Period Poverty

      May 17, 2021
    • Discovery
      1. Science
      2. Environment
      3. History
      4. International
      Featured

      Brewing up a Storm: The History of Guinness

      By Emily ReadMarch 20, 20210
      Recent

      Manizha – the artist causing a stir as the Russian representative for Eurovision 2021:

      May 6, 2021

      Japan plan to release radioactive water into the ocean

      May 6, 2021

      The link between the AstraZeneca vaccine and blood clots

      April 29, 2021
    • Sport
      1. Varsity 2019
      2. Varsity 2018
      3. Varsity 2017
      4. Varsity 2016
      5. Varsity 2015
      6. Varsity 2014
      7. Varsity 2013
        • Varsity 2013 Results
        • Varsity 2013 – In tweets
      Featured

      Bangor Muddogs’ American Football: a young woman finding her place

      By Jade HillMarch 23, 20210
      Recent

      The 48-hour rise and fall of the European Super League

      April 27, 2021

      The European Super League is announced

      April 19, 2021

      Formula 1’s ‘Drive to Survive S3’ is released

      April 7, 2021
    • Students’ Union
      1. Union News
      2. Societies
      3. Volunteering
      4. Clubs
      Featured

      INTERVIEW: Be Period Positive

      By Caroline CartmillMarch 17, 20210
      Recent

      Bangor University Feminist Society

      March 30, 2021

      INTERVIEW: Be Period Positive

      March 17, 2021

      LGBT History Month in Bangor

      March 4, 2021
    • Issues
      • Current Issue
      • This year’s issues
      • Last year’s issues
      • Seren Archive
      • Seren Teams
    Seren
    Home»Discovery»Science»Surgeons discover new body part
    Science

    Surgeons discover new body part

    Edwin PynegarBy Edwin PynegarDecember 11, 2013Updated:February 9, 2015No Comments2 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    drawing

    You might have thought that in this age of MRI scanners and keyhole surgery, we’d know about the anatomy of the human body from the head right down to the tips of your toes.

    It turns out, though, that we didn’t know it quite as well as we’d thought. Two surgeons from the hospital of the Catholic University of Leuven in Belgium have discovered a new ligament in the knee, with major implications for how we might treat sports injuries in the future.

    The road to the discovery of the antero-lateral ligament, as it’s now known, dates all the way back to 1879, when a French doctor proposed the existence of an extra undiscovered ligament at the front of the knee joint.

    Dr Steven Claes and Professor Johan Bellemans then revisited the suggestion as part of their research into anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries.

    ACL injuries are common in sports where pivoting in the knee is common, from football and basketball through to skiing.

    They were attempting to find out why exactly it was that despite surgery and rehabilitation, some people with cruciate ligament tears suffer from “pivot shift” – episodes when the knee gives way during activity.

    Dissecting 41 bodies, they found the antero-lateral ligament as a distinctive separate structure in all but one of them, in exactly the location the French doctor had suggested 130 years before. Further research then showed that the pivot shift phenomenon stems, in all the cases they examined, from an injury to the previously unknown ligament.

    The Anatomical Society, which published their study, praised the work as “very refreshing” and said that it was a valuable reminder that despite the medical world’s advanced technology, basic work on the anatomy of the human body isn’t yet complete and still throws up surprises.

    Dr Claes and Prof Bellemans say that their work questions much of the current medical thinking on the treatment of cruciate ligament tears. They’re now working on techniques for repairing injuries in the newly discovered ligament, but it’d be best not to hold your breath: they say that a surgical fix is still likely to be several years away.

    ACL Bellemans breath Claes ligament medical research Science
    Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
    Edwin Pynegar
    • Twitter

    Science Editor 2013/14

    Related Posts

    Japan plan to release radioactive water into the ocean

    May 6, 2021

    The link between the AstraZeneca vaccine and blood clots

    April 29, 2021

    How 3D printing can revolutionise medicine

    April 15, 2021

    Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    MORE INFORMATION
    • ABOUT
    • ADVERTISE
    • CONTACT US
    • GET INVOLVED
    • MEMBERS
    Links
    • Bangor University Bangor University
    • Google+ Google+
    • Undeb Bangor Undeb Bangor
    About

    Seren is Bangor University Students’ Union’s English Language Newspaper

    We have editorial independence from both Bangor University and Bangor Students’ Union. Seren is written by students for students and we’d love you to get involved!

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.