meniscus

meniscus /me·nis·cus/ (me-nis´kus) pl. menis´ci   [L.] something of crescent shape, as the concave or convex surface of a column of liquid in a pipet or buret, or a crescent-shaped cartilage in the knee joint.menis´cal

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tactile meniscus  one of the small, cup-shaped nerve endings found in the deep epidermis, in hair follicles, and in the hard palate; they function as touch receptors.

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me·nis·cus (m-nsks)

n. pl. me·nis·cus·es or me·nis·ci (-ns, -k, -k)

1. A crescent-shaped body.

2. A concavo-convex lens.

3. The curved upper surface of a nonturbulent liquid in a container that is concave if the liquid wets the walls and convex if it does not.

4. A disk of cartilage that acts as a cushion between the ends of bones in a joint.

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me·niscal (-kl), me·niscate (-kt), me·niscoid (-koid), menis·coidal (mns-koidl) adj.

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meniscus

(mnis´ks),
n the cartilaginous intracapsular disc interposed between the mandibular condyle and the glenoid fossa of the temporal bone at the temporomandibular joint.

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meniscus

pl. menisci [L.]

1. something of crescent shape, such as the concave or convex surface of a column of liquid in a pipette or burette.

2. one of a pair of crescent-shaped fibrocartilages (semilunar cartilages) in the stifle joint that provide stability while permitting both flexion and rotation of the joint.

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meniscus tear

a common injury in dogs with rupture of the cranial cruciate ligament and the accompanying instability of the stifle joint. Most tears occur in the caudal horn of the medial meniscus.