Which knee injury describes a tear of the meniscus that displaces like a bucket handle?

• A. Bucket-handle tear
• B. Parrot beak tear
• C. Radial tear
• D. Horizontal tear

Answer: (A)

The main idea here is recognizing a specific meniscal tear pattern where a portion of the meniscus tears longitudinally and then flips or displaces as a single piece, like a bucket handle swinging into the knee. In a bucket-handle tear, a vertical longitudinal tear allows a large central portion of the meniscus to displace toward the center of the knee, often flipping into the intercondylar notch. This displacement can cause mechanical symptoms such as knee locking or limited extension, which is the hallmark clue you’d expect clinically and on imaging.

This pattern is distinct from other tear types: a parrot beak tear creates a flap that may resemble a bird’s beak but isn’t defined by a displaced fragment; a radial tear runs from the inner edge outward like spokes, dividing the meniscus; a horizontal tear runs parallel to the tibial plateau, splitting the meniscus into top and bottom parts. None of these describe the characteristic displaced “bucket handle” fragment, which is why the bucket-handle tear is the correct description.