How to examine the knee
Other platforms explain it with text and video. In VMS you practice it on the patient.
The knee exam checks the joint, its ligaments and its menisci. The Ottawa knee rules help decide who needs an X-ray after an injury.
Step by step
Prepare
Introduce yourself, get consent and expose both legs. [1]
Look standing and walking
Alignment (bow legs or knock knees), limp, swelling behind the knee. [2]
Look and feel lying down
Swelling, redness, thigh muscle wasting, temperature, and tenderness along the joint lines. [2]
Fluid in the joint
Patellar tap for a large effusion, bulge sign for a small one. [2]
Range of motion
Full straightening and bending, active then passive. [1]
Ligaments
Lachman and anterior drawer (ACL), posterior drawer (PCL), and side stress at full extension and 30 degrees (MCL and LCL). [2]
Menisci
Joint line tenderness and McMurray test (pain or click with rotation). [2]
X-ray decision
Ottawa knee rules: age 55 or older, tenderness only at the kneecap or at the head of the fibula, cannot bend to 90 degrees, or cannot take four steps. [1]
Common errors
- Examining only lying down.
- Missing a small effusion (use the bulge sign).
- Not comparing ligament laxity with the other knee.
Practice it in VMS
In VMS you do this on the patient, not on paper: every step goes on the checklist with a score, and in Teach mode Blocky tells you what comes next.
VMS cases that train this skill
Sources
Facts and steps follow NCCPA PANCE Content Blueprint; Stanford Medicine 25 (bedside exam). VMS is not affiliated with these organizations. Updated: 2026-10-11.