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Imaging evaluation of patients with osteonecrosis of the femoral head

  • Modern Surgical Treatment of Hip Avascular Necrosis (MA Mont, Section Editor)
  • Published:
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Abstract

Imaging modalities for the diagnosis of osteonecrosis (ON) of the femoral head have been studied extensively, but there have been few reports strictly addressing radiographic evaluation. The purpose of this report is to examine the use and role of (1) plain radiographs, (2) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), (3) computerized tomography (CT), (4) bone scanning, and (5) positron emission topography (PET) for the diagnostic evaluation of ON. Plain radiographs are a mainstay in diagnosis but have very low sensitivity for early ON. MRI is the gold standard for diagnostic evaluation but may not identify subchondral fractures on collapse as well as CT scan or tomogram. Bone scanning should not be used for diagnosis due to its low sensitivity. PET scanning does not have a definitive role in diagnosis yet. Future research should focus on the role of new imaging technologies in evaluation.

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Conflict of Interest

Todd P. Pierce, Julio J. Jauregui, Jeffrey J. Cherian, and Randa K. Elmallah declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Michael A. Mont has received grants and personal fees from Stryker, Wright Medical Technology, Inc., DJ Orthopaedics, Joint Active Systems, Sage Products, Inc., and TissueGene. Dr. Mont has also received personal fees from Janssen, Medical Compression Systems, Medtronic, and grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIAMS & NICHD). Dr. Mont also serves on the editorial/governing board of the American Journal of Orthopedics, Journal of Arthroplasty, Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (American), Journal of Knee Surgery, Orthopedics, and Surgical Techniques International and is also a board member/committee appointment for the AAOS Society.

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This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Joint Preservation and Replacement, Rubin Institute for Advanced Orthopedics, Sinai Hospital of Baltimore, 2401 West Belvedere Avenue, Baltimore, MD, 21215, USA

    Todd P. Pierce, Julio J. Jauregui, Jeffrey J. Cherian, Randa K. Elmallah & Michael A. Mont

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  1. Todd P. Pierce
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  2. Julio J. Jauregui
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Correspondence to Michael A. Mont.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Modern Surgical Treatment of Hip Avascular Necrosis

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Pierce, T.P., Jauregui, J.J., Cherian, J.J. et al. Imaging evaluation of patients with osteonecrosis of the femoral head. Curr Rev Musculoskelet Med 8, 221–227 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12178-015-9279-6

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