Which option correctly describes Apley’s test for meniscal assessment?

• A. Apley’s distraction test
• B. Apley’s grinding test
• C. Bounce test
• D. Apley’s compression test with rotation

Answer: (D)

The essential idea is to provoke the meniscus by pressing the tibia against the femur while twisting the leg. In this maneuver, the patient lies prone with the knee bent about 90 degrees. The clinician applies downward pressure on the tibia and rotates it internally and externally. A positive sign is pain reproduced during this compression with rotation, often with a grinding sensation, which indicates a meniscal tear because the damaged meniscal tissue is being sheared under load. This same action is sometimes referred to as the grinding version of Apley’s test. The distraction maneuver, by contrast, stresses the knee ligaments; if pain appears with distraction rather than compression, that points more toward ligamentous injury rather than a meniscal tear.