ReviewClinical cases in mineral and bone metabolism : the official journal of the Italian Society of Osteoporosis, Mineral Metabolism, and Skeletal Diseases
The role of imaging in diagnosis and management of femoral head avascular necrosis.
Review in Clinical cases in mineral and bone metabolism : the official journal of the Italian Society of Osteoporosis, Mineral Metabolism, and Skeletal Diseases. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 37 papers.
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Who cites it
37 citing papers in PubMed, 57 citations in OpenAlex.
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- Article
- Corticosteroid-associated osteonecrosis in paediatric compared with adult patients: are they the same disease?Bone & joint open · 2026Article
- Geographic characterization of intra-articular pathologies in early-stage avascular necrosis of the hip.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2026Article
- Proportion of Avascular Necrosis of Femoral Head in Coronavirus Disease 19 Patients.Annals of African medicine · 2026Article
- Bilateral Avascular Necrosis of the Hips in a Patient With Sickle Cell Trait and Chronic Alcohol Use.Journal of hematology · 2025Article
- The bibliometric and visualization analysis of alcohol-induced osteonecrosis of the femoral head: research trends and future directions (1998-2024).Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2025Article
- Avascular Necrosis in Patients With Cushing Syndrome.JCEM case reports · 2025Article
- Senescence-driven osteonecrosis of the femoral head in the elderly-a distinct pathophysiological entity.Frontiers in medicine · 2025Article
- Deep learning approach to femoral AVN detection in digital radiography: differentiating patients and pre-collapse stages.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2024Article
- Osteonecrosis of the Humeral Head 3 Years Following Fracture Fixation of a 4-Part Proximal Humerus Fracture: A Case Report.Journal of orthopaedic case reports · 2024Article
- Article
- Screening for Asymptomatic Osteonecrosis of the Hip in Systemic Lupus Erythematous: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of MRI-Based Prevalence.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- Avascular necrosis of femoral head following COVID-19 infection.Annals of medicine and surgery (2012) · 2023Article
- CT and MRI findings beyond the subchondral bone in osteonecrosis of the femoral head to distinguish between ARCO stages 2 and 3A.European radiology · 2023Article
- The incidence of focal osteonecrosis of the femoral head and its impact on conversion hip arthroplasty after screw fixation of femoral neck fractures: a multicenter retrospective study based on postoperative magnetic resonance imaging.European journal of trauma and emergency surgery : official publication of the European Trauma Society · 2023Review
- Extremely rare combination of open dislocation of the ankle with superior type anterior hip dislocation without bone fracture: A case report.Clinical case reports · 2022Article
- Safety of surgical hip dislocation in femoral head fracture and dislocation (FHFD) and avascular necrosis risk factor analysis of FHFD: midterm results confirmed by SPECT/CT and MRI.Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2022Article
- Osteonecrosis of the Femoral Head.Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons. Global research & reviews · 2022Article
- An all-arthroscopic light bulb technique to treat osteonecrosis of the femoral head through outside-in fashion without distraction: A case report.Frontiers in surgery · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The aim of this paper is to critically review the literature documenting the imaging approach in adult Femoral Head Avascular Necrosis (FHAVN). For this purpose we described and evaluated different radiological techniques, such as X-ray, Computed Tomography (CT), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), and Nuclear Medicine. Plain films are considered the first line imaging technique due to its ability to depict femoral head morphological changes, to its low costs and high availability. CT is not a routinely performed technique, but is useful to rule out the presence of a subchondral fracture when MRI is doubtful or contraindicated. MRI is unanimously considered the gold standard technique in the early stages, being capable to detect bone marrow changes such as edema and sclerosis. It may be useful also to guide treatment and, as CT, it is a validated technique in follow-up of patients with FHAVN. Nuclear medicine imaging is mostly applied in post-operative period to detect graft viability or infective complications. More advanced techniques may be useful in particular conditions but still need to be validated; thus new research trials are desirable. In conclusion, X-ray examination is the first line approach, but lacks of sensitivity in early stage whereas MRI is indicated. CT easily depicts late stage deformation and may decrease MRI false positive results in detecting the subchondral fracture. However, the role of both Nuclear Medicine Imaging and advanced MR techniques in FHAVN still need to be investigated.
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