Imaging study demonstrates diagnostic specificity of the fat intensity sign for avascular necrosis of the femoral head, indicating its utility in distinguishing necrotic bone from other hip disorders.
In some patients with avascular necrosis of the femoral head (ANFH), an area of signal intensity similar to that of subcutaneous fat tissue is found within or proximal to the hypointense zone of spin echo MR images. We refer to these MR findings as the "fat intensity" sign. This fat intensity sign was positive in 62 (47%) of 133 MR examinations of femoral heads with radiographically proven ANFH; this sign was negative in all hips with other diseases including degenerative joint disease, transient osteoporosis, rapidly destructive coxoarthrosis, and rheumatoid arthritis.
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Kokubo et al. (1991) studied this question.
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