Your organs and tissues need a healthy blood supply to survive, and if blood supply is interrupted, it can cause major issues for that part of your body. Avascular Necrosis (AVN) is a condition in which blood supply to the bone is inhibited, slowly leading to the death of bone tissue. It can develop in any body joint, but it tends to be more common in areas like your ankle, knee, hip and shoulder. In today’s blog, we’re going to take a closer look at how avascular necrosis of the shoulder is treated.
Causes And Symptoms Of Avascular Necrosis Of The Shoulder
Your shoulder is a much more flexible joint than your hip or knee, and it is composed of the upper arm bone (humerus) and the shoulder blade (scapula). These two bones fit together like a ball and socket, and a variety of blood vessels supply blood to your humerus. In patients with AVN of the shoulder, blood supply to the humeral head is lost, leading to bone necrosis or bone death.
Some of the most common causes and contributing factors to avascular necrosis of the shoulder include:
- Traumatic injury to the shoulder and key blood vessels in the area
- Blood vessel damage from prolonged alcohol consumption
- Infection
- Underlying health conditions like AIDS, Sickle Cell Disease or Lupus
- Long-term corticosteroid use
Common symptoms of early and moderate stages of AVN of the shoulder include localized pain, stiffness, decreased mobility and a cracking or popping sound when moving the shoulder area.
Diagnosing And Treating Shoulder Avascular Necrosis
If you are experiencing one or more of the following symptoms and have reason to believe you may be dealing with the early stages of avascular necrosis, set up a consultation with a specialist like Dr. Holloway. Avascular necrosis can be identified with a physical exam and some imaging tests like an X-ray, MRI or bone scan, so you can get a diagnosis and treatment plan in short order.
Treatment will depend on how advanced the condition is and how well your shoulder specialist believes you’ll respond to treatment. For early stages, the condition can oftentimes be successfully treated with non-operative methods like bisphosphonates, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, exercise, rest, physical therapy and lipid-lowering agents. Pursuit of a combination of these treatments can usually help to restore healthy blood flow to the shoulder and improve bone health.
For more moderate stages of the condition, minimally invasive surgery may be recommended. Surgery can help facilitate the formation of new blood vessels to grow into the necrotic area or replace dead tissue with healthy bone grafted from another area of the body. For the most serious cases, a shoulder replacement procedure may be necessary. In this situation, the necrotic and damaged bones are replaced with artificial parts. If AVN only affects one side of the joint, you may be able to get by with a partial shoulder replacement, but your surgeon can walk you through the specifics of what type of care you’ll need based on your individual bone damage.
For more information about avascular necrosis or treating other uncomfortable shoulder conditions, reach out to Dr. Holloway and his team today at (865) 410-7887.
