Femoral head necrosis? It sounds alarming, and in fact, this disease is becoming more common. There are many causes that can lead to femoral head necrosis, among which, the use of large amounts of hormones, long-term alcohol abuse, and trauma are the three most common causes. Therefore, people who use a lot of hormones for a long time should go to the hospital regularly (half a year) for relevant examinations in order to detect osteonecrosis of the femoral head at an early stage. What is femoral head necrosis? Due to the blockage of blood vessels or interruption of blood flow in the femoral head, it leads to ischemic degeneration of bone tissue in the femoral head, necrosis of bone tissue, disappearance of bone trabeculae, loss of support, collapse of the femoral head, resulting in the destruction of the hip joint, and eventually the hip joint has to be replaced surgically. Long-term hormone use: increased risk of femoral head necrosis It has been clinically found that high doses of hormones significantly increase the chance of femoral head necrosis. In 2003, hormones were one of the most effective ways to deal with SARS, yet many patients who used high doses of hormones subsequently developed femoral head necrosis. Hormones (dexamethasone, prednisone, methylprednisolone, etc.) are more widely used in clinical practice and have good efficacy in rescuing shock, respiratory distress, acute allergic reaction, vasoneurotic reaction, etc. Its anti-inflammatory and anti-swelling effects are also rapid, but long-term high-dose application of hormones, excessive total dose, or short-term excessive dose of hormones can cause femoral head necrosis. The incidence of femoral head necrosis will be even higher in alcoholics and patients with diabetes and rheumatoid disease who then apply hormones in large amounts. Thus, for patients who need to take hormones for a long time, regular MRI or X-ray examination of both hips should not be neglected. Early treatment can preserve joint function Femoral head necrosis is a kind of “intractable disease”, but femoral head necrosis is also divided into early and late stages, not “necrosis” as soon as the disease is acquired. The most common clinical symptom in the early stage is deep groin pain, which is sometimes mild and heavy and relieved after rest. In the advanced stage, the femoral head collapses and deforms, the joint space narrows or disappears, and the hip joint is severely damaged, at which time the patient is unable to do bending and turning movements. Therefore, if effective treatment is taken at the early stage of femoral head necrosis, the collapse of the femoral head can be prevented and the joint function can be preserved. However, the early symptoms of femoral head necrosis are not obvious and can easily be overlooked and delay the diagnosis and treatment. Currently, MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) is the gold standard for diagnosing osteonecrosis, with a sensitivity of 99%. The disease mostly occurs in young adults, with an average age of onset of 38 years. In the early stage (1-2), surgical treatment is not required, but only medication to dilate blood vessels, improve blood circulation, bed rest and reduce pressure on the hip joint. At the same time, regular review, many patients can obtain clinical cure. If effective treatment is not received in the early stage, the majority of patients will eventually have to receive an artificial total hip joint replacement. However, the artificial hip joint has a limited service life, and once the artificial joint is replaced, it often requires several revision surgeries, which brings great physical and mental pain to the patient and also creates a heavy financial burden. Therefore, patients with femoral head necrosis should be treated aggressively to preserve the femoral head or delay artificial joint replacement. If the femoral head has collapsed and the extent of necrosis is large, the most effective treatment at this time is to treat it with artificial joint replacement. This will relieve the patient’s pain, restore joint function, and maximize the patient’s return to normal life.