Problem
A promising 17-year-old junior footballer Jake comes in to see you with anterior knee pain. On visual inspection, you notice some mild swelling (effusion) and atrophy (wasting) in the medial compartment of the knee and upper thigh. Jake cannot remember a single specific incident where the knee was badly twisted or he suffered severe trauma to the knee joint. You are concerned about the integrity of the medial (tibial) collateral ligament and the medial meniscus and decide to assess these. You also decide to assess the hip joint and foot mechanics in your initial assessment.
Task
In your initial problem of the hip joint, you perform a Thomas test, as you flex and bring Jake's leg up to his chest, the same leg abducts away from the midline of his body and the knee extends. What does this tell you about the length of the tensor fasciae latae and rectus femoris muscles on that side of Jake's body?