Double Posterior Cruciate Ligament Sign

A 34-year-old male presented with persistent medial knee pain and mechanical symptoms three months after a rotational injury, with limited knee extension on examination. Magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated the double posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) sign, produced by a displaced bucket-handle tear of the medial meniscus with the fragment lying anterior and parallel to the intact PCL within the intercondylar notch. Coronal sequences confirmed displacement and loss of normal meniscal configuration. Arthroscopy verified the diagnosis, and arthroscopic partial meniscectomy was performed due to chronic displacement and poor healing potential. Following structured rehabilitation, the patient returned to full athletic activity without symptoms at one-year follow-up. This case underscores the importance of recognizing the double PCL sign as a highly specific MRI finding enabling prompt diagnosis and appropriate management of displaced bucket-handle meniscal tears, while also highlighting its radiologic-arthroscopic correlation and the clinical implications of delayed presentation on treatment strategy, and provides a clear illustrative example of this classic imaging sign for educational purposes.

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Publication Details

Journal
Reports — Medical Cases Images and Videos
Published
2026-04-14
DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/reports9020120
Primary Topic
Knee injuries and reconstruction techniques
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Double Posterior Cruciate Ligament Sign

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Reports — Medical Cases Images and Videos
Knee injuries and reconstruction techniques
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Double Posterior Cruciate Ligament Sign

Evdokia Billis, Konstantinos Kaliarntas, Christos Koutserimpas, John Gliatis, George Triantafyllou, Charalampos Matzaroglou, Nikolaos-Achilleas Arkoudis, Maria Piagkou
article en

Abstract

A 34-year-old male presented with persistent medial knee pain and mechanical symptoms three months after a rotational injury, with limited knee extension on examination. Magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated the double posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) sign, produced by a displaced bucket-handle tear of the medial meniscus with the fragment lying anterior and parallel to the intact PCL within the intercondylar notch. Coronal sequences confirmed displacement and loss of normal meniscal configuration. Arthroscopy verified the diagnosis, and arthroscopic partial meniscectomy was performed due to chronic displacement and poor healing potential. Following structured rehabilitation, the patient returned to full athletic activity without symptoms at one-year follow-up. This case underscores the importance of recognizing the double PCL sign as a highly specific MRI finding enabling prompt diagnosis and appropriate management of displaced bucket-handle meniscal tears, while also highlighting its radiologic-arthroscopic correlation and the clinical implications of delayed presentation on treatment strategy, and provides a clear illustrative example of this classic imaging sign for educational purposes.

Reports — Medical Cases Images and VideosVol. 9(2)
University of Patras (GR), National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (GR), University General Hospital Attikon (GR)
University of Patras
Openalex Percentile: Top 20%
Knee injuries and reconstruction techniques
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