Minimally invasive treatment of femoral head avascular necrosis in a beta thalassemia carrier. A case-report.

Avascular necrosis (AVNFH) of the femoral head is a relatively rare condition linked with numerous causes. If not treated promptly then arthritis may be inevitable, making hip replacement the only treatment option. In this case report we present a young AVNFH patient with history of heterozygous beta thalassemia. To our knowledge this is the second case where a thalassemia carrier presents AVNFH. Due to his age and pre-collapse stage, we elected to use a minimally invasive, femoral head sparing technique. Therefore, the patient underwent arthroscopy and fluoroscopy assisted core decompression followed by autograft and demineralized bone matrix application. Recovery was uneventful and a year after surgery femoral collapse did not progress. Moreover, the patient was pain free and capable of participating in sport activities. Even though it is difficult to describe a pathway linking heterozygous beta thalassemia with AVNFH, a possible relation between them cannot be discarded.