Total hip replacement in avascular necrosis of femoral head

Abstract

Background: A study was conducted to evaluate the role of total hip replacement in cases of advanced avascular necrosis of the head of femur in patients admitted to two tertiary care military hospitals. 20 patients reporting with avascular necrosis of femoral head were taken for study. Methods: Out of 20 patients, 16 were males and 4 were females. In 7 cases there was history of chronic alcohol intake and among them one patient was on steroids for long time for the treatment of bronchial asthma. 2 patients developed avascular necrosis of the femoral head following pregnancy and in two cases, it was post-traumatic. In the remaining nine cases, no cause was found and were so considered idiopathic. They were evaluated pre-operatively and total hip replacement was done in all twenty cases. Results: Patients were evaluated using Harris hip score. There was improvement of the score in all cases. Conclusion: Total hip replacement is a boon for patients of advanced avascular necrosis of femoral head.