Hip core decompression (HCD) is not being done as part of this study. Rather, patients who are undergoing HCD at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (SJCRH) will be observed for functional outcomes following the procedure.
HCD is considered an excellent surgical option when considering the multiple issues among this population, which include young age, the natural progression of osteonecrosis to femoral head collapse, the limited life expectancy of the prosthetic technology currently available for total hip arthroplasty (THA), and patient quality of life. This study will seek to describe functional outcomes and quality of gait following HCD in a pediatric population with osteonecrosis. The results of this study will provide valuable information as to the functional limitations within this population pre- and post-operatively.
For each research participant the observations on all outcome measures of interest will be collected at 5 time points: pre-operatively (baseline measure), and post-operatively at 6 weeks, 12 weeks, 6 months and 1 year. These time points will allow for comparison between pre- and post-operative outcomes to determine if outcomes are improved following surgery, and if these outcomes continue to improve over time. This study will also provide a foundation for the future development of treatment programs designed to target identified limitations specific to this population.
