Osteonecrosis of the Femoral Head: Another Legacy of COVID-19?

Abstract

Background. Recovery from COVID-19 does not always proceed without complications, especially in patients who have suffered severe forms of the disease. Most researchers confirm a significant increase in the incidence of osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH) after COVID-19. However, there is no clear opinion on the individual aspects of the development and course of the disease. This is an extremely important issue that allows us to identify the main risk groups for the development of post-COVID-19 osteonecrosis and, consequently, to perform the earliest possible screening of this complication.
 Aims of the study: 1) To evaluate the impact of the past COVID-19 on epidemiologic parameters and clinical course of osteonecrosis of the femoral head in patients; 2) to study the causes of its development.
 Methods. We have analyzed the data of medical histories of 674 patients diagnosed with osteonecrosis of the femoral head who sought medical care in 2018 and in 2022. Patients were divided into 4 groups according to the presumed causes of development of the disease. The first group enrolled 183 patients who underwent COVID-19 and received steroid therapy (ST). The second group included 78 patients who underwent COVID-19 without ST therapy. The third group consisted of 103 patients with ONFH that manifested in 2022 without COVID-19 in the previous medical history. The comparison group was made up of 310 patients who developed ONFH in 2018 before the appearance of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
 Results. The sample of patients with COVID-19-associated osteonecrosis differed significantly from patients without COVID-19, in terms of gender, age, time of disease onset, extent of the femoral head damage, and disease progression rate (p0.001). The level of early ONFH diagnosis was extremely low, not differing from that in the pre-pandemic period.
 Conclusion. The COVID-19 pandemic has increased the incidence of ONFH, significantly modifying both its epidemiology and clinical picture. Nevertheless, the vigilance of practitioners remains extremely low, which affects the timely diagnosis of the disease.