title: Current concepts on the pathogenesis of osteonecrosis of the femoral head.
abstract: Treatment of atraumatic osteonecrosis of the femoral head is presently based not on disease prevention, but instead on the end-stage changes of bone associated with the necrotic lesion. Current diagnostic modalities are limited, by both cost and efficacy, in their ability to diagnose early-stage osteonecrosis. While many studies have assumed the cause of osteonecrosis is vascular occlusion, recent work suggests that alternate processes are primarily involved in the pathogenesis. By examining these concepts, a better understanding of osteonecrosis of the femoral head may lead to earlier diagnostic modalities and treatment protocols to prevent this devastating process from developing.
authors.affiliation: Case Western Reserve University Hospitals, Cleveland, Ohio.
authors.forename: W C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Schroer
mesh_terms: D005271:Femur Head Necrosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans