Avascular Necrosis Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis And Treatment

What Is Avascular Necrosis?

Also known as osteonecrosis, avascular necrosis is the death of bone tissue which occurs due to a lack of blood supply.

If the culmination of blood supply is not dealt with, it eventually causes the bone to collapse. This is due to the fact that bone, being a living tissue, requires blood.

If avascular necrosis develops in the bones of a joint, it often leads to destruction of the joint articular surfaces.

Causes Of Avascular Necrosis:

Any of the following causes can lead to the development of avascular necrosis:

chemotherapy
alcoholism
excessivesteroid use
post trauma
caisson disease(decompression sickness)
vascular compression
hypertension
vasculitis
arterial embolism
thrombosis
damage from radiation
sickle cell anemia
Gaucher’s Disease
Lupus
Prolonged, repeated exposure to high pressures (as experienced by commercial and militarydivers). Also known as decompression sickness.
Autoimmune diseases
HIV infection
Chronic corticosteroid use
Pancreatitis, inflammation of the pancreas
Joint or bone trauma
Fatty deposits in blood vessels which block small blood vessels, reducing the blood flow that feeds bones.

Symptoms Of Avascular Necrosis:

No symptoms are exhibited during the initial stages of avascular necrosis.

As the disease progresses, pain is experienced in the affected joint. The pain, initially, is only experienced upon putting weight on the affected joint. Gradually, it progresses onto feeling extreme pain at all times.

The intensity of the pain varies from mild to severe.

Avascular necrosis normally affects the following regions:

Long bones such as thefemur (the bone extending from the knee joint to the hip joint).
humerus (the bone of the upper arm),
knees
shoulders
ankles
jaw

Diagnosis Of Avascular Necrosis:

The following tests and exams are conducted in order to diagnose avascular necrosis:

Physical exam, where the doctor looks for tenderness in the joints.
X-rays, which may reveal bone changes which occur in later stages of avascular necrosis
MRI and CT scans, which show detailed images that can be used to detect early changes in bones
Bone scan, which highlights the affected parts.