Avascular necrosis of the hip in the sickle cell hemoglobinopathies.

Two hundred and eighty-one patients with sickle cell disease were studied clinically and radiographically with emphasis on diagnosis of epiphyseal abnormalities and potential complications of hip replacement. Nineteen percent of patients with hemoglobin SS disease had avascular necrosis of the femoral head (ANF) while a 9% incidence was found in hemoglobin SC disease. Twenty of 47 patients with ANF had no hip pain. The degree of anemia did not correlate well with symptoms. Thirteen patients with avascular necrosis of the hip underwent hip replacement and four developed prosthesis-related complications.