Clinical management of medial patellar plica syndrome: Mini review from diagnosis to treatment

Synovial plicae are thickenings of the synovial knee membrane; they are very frequent and often asymptomatic. However, they can become symptomatic due to idiopathic or secondary causes, like trauma and inflammation of the synovial tissue. Currently, synovial plicae are classified as infrapatellar, mediopatellar and suprapatellar. The prevalence of the mediopatellar plica over the other forms of plicae varies between 18% and 60%. The most reported symptom of the mediopatellar plica is pain located medial to the patella above the joint line. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is the most useful examination to highlight the presence of the plica, its measurement and exact location. The treatment is initially conservative, i.e. medical treatment and physiotherapy, however when these fail, the plica should be removed surgically via arthroscopy. In the current paper, we aim to report our clinical experience in the management of medial patellar plica syndrome by describing the clinical presentation and diagnosis of this condition as well as its treatment.