Accumulation of Necrotic Fatty Marrow in Osteonecrotic Hips Mimicking Septic Arthritis

초록

Osteonecrosis (ON) of the femoral head can lead to the development of arthritis of the hip necessitating a total hip arthroplasty (THA). The process of degeneration of the femoral head can result in generation of liquefied fat which combined with joint fluid may resemble pus. It is common practice to withhold performing THA in patients with septic arthritis of the joint to avoid periprosthetic joint infection [1–3]. It is thus plausible that the presence of liquefied fat in patients with ON of the femoral head may lead surgeons to erroneously make a diagnosis of septic arthritis and delay THA. This in turn can lead to a socioeconomic burden and increased morbidity for the patient. In this chapter, the relationship between the presence of pseudopus and osteonecrosis of the femoral head is explored [3]. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2024.

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