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Symptoms
By Mayo Clinic staffMany people have no symptoms in the early stages of avascular necrosis of bone. As the disease worsens, your affected joint may hurt only when you put weight on it. Eventually, the joint may hurt even when you're lying down.
Pain can be mild or severe and usually develops gradually. Joints most likely to be affected are the hip, shoulder, knee, hand and foot. Pain associated with avascular necrosis of the hip may be focused in the groin, thigh or buttock. Some people experience avascular necrosis bilaterally — for example, in both hips or in both knees.
When to see a doctor
See your doctor if you experience persistent pain in any joint. Seek immediate medical attention if you believe you have a broken bone or a dislocated joint.
- Firestein GS, et al. Kelley's Textbook of Rheumatology. 8th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2009. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/208746819-6/0/1807/0.html. Accessed Feb. 28, 2012.
- Questions and answers about osteonecrosis (avascular necrosis). National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases. http://www.niams.nih.gov/Health_Info/Osteonecrosis/default.asp. Accessed Feb. 28, 2012.
- Jones LC. Osteonecrosis (avascular necrosis of bone). http://www.uptodate.com/index. Accessed Feb. 28, 2012.
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