Sickle cell anemia (homozygous S) with aseptic necrosis of femoral head.

B11 l ;:OUlCHI B.. ‘TANAKA, GEO1 IE 0. CLIFF0III AND AluNoLm II. AXELItOI) S INCE the advemit of the newer t.echmiics for differentiatimig hemoglobimi types,’4 mio (‘ase of sickle cell anemia (homozygous 5) proven by these miiethods has I)eemi described imi which aseptic necrosis of the femnoral head was present. Aseptic miecrosis of the femnoral capital epiphysis has beemi reported by Smit.h and Comiley5 to) o’cuir frequently in the gehietic variants of sickle cell amiemnia. In this report, the complete absemice of this lesiomi in their patients with sickle cell anemia was stressed. Several cases showing femoral head lesiomis amid presumned to represent. true sickle cell anemia have been reported,6’6 but these were miot. verified electrophoreticably, nor were the clinical and hematologic data sufficiehit to make a definite climiical diagmiosis of sickle cell anemia as distimict fromin its genetic variamits. It is our purpose to present six patients with sickle cell amiemiiia (homozygous S) proven by paper clect.rophoresis who demonstrated aseptic necrosis of the femnoral head.