[Explanation] Recently, the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou admitted a special patient.
For the past eight years, a 23-year-old girl has inexplicably "disappeared" her right thigh bone.
According to reports, in 2014, the girl suffered an accidental injury and fractured her right thigh. After the operation, the doctor found that the wounded bone was shortening during the review.
Since then, she has had 2 bone grafts, but the bone in her right thigh continued to shorten, and the 23cm-long bone that was implanted "disappeared".
In February 2022, the girl came to the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou and was diagnosed with idiopathic osteolysis.
This is a rare disease.
[Concurrent] Shen Jingnan, Director of the Department of Orthopaedic Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University
This dissolution means that there is no clear reason, so for so many years, it is difficult to find a targeted treatment method for its research, so the treatment is mainly aimed at these complications.
For example, if there is pain, treat the pain. If the osteoclasts of the bone are active, then use some drugs that inhibit osteoclasts, but it is difficult to restore the original shape of the normal bone with such drugs. , so it usually restores part of the calcification of the bone.
[Explanation] Professor Shen Jingnan told reporters that the patient's current disease development speed has eased, and drug treatment can be given first, and then the lesion can be surgically removed and an artificial prosthesis can be implanted.
However, due to the unclear etiology, there are many difficulties in the treatment of osteolysis, and the treatment effect and degree of recovery cannot be determined.
[Concurrent] Shen Jingnan, Director of the Department of Orthopaedic Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University
The first difficulty is whether this dissolution can be controlled.
The second difficulty is what is difficult. As an early stage, the difficulty is that you are not willing to cut off this seemingly useful bone, and you cannot be cruel.
The third difficulty is that there is no drug to control it.
The other difficulty is that if the bone (fracture) occurs in the spine, there is another risk that it will press on the nerve, which will lead to compression of the spinal cord, and whether it will be paralyzed, so there will be such a complication, which is more serious. .
[Explanation] At present, according to the doctor's recommendation, the girl injects drugs every week to promote bone growth, and then considers bone replacement.
Professor Shen said that although it takes a lot of time and expense, there is still hope that osteolysis can be controlled. The patient is still very young. He hopes to preserve the patient's bones as much as possible so that the patient can walk independently after surgery.
[Concurrent] Shen Jingnan, Director of the Department of Orthopaedic Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University
First take medicine to see if it can make her bones harden again. This is one, if it can recover, then keep the bones that can be preserved first, and then use the confirmed part, such as steel bars or prostheses or Bone cement these, like reinforced cement to connect it, this is one.
The second is that she has been broken for so many years, so her legs have also shortened, so she wants to restore the length of her legs, but this condition is to ensure that the remaining bones cannot be dissolved and destroyed again, at least some The lesions will be cleaned up, so these methods can still restore the function of her certain limbs, such as walking independently, there should still be hope.
Reporter Wang Qingran Liu Guanqun Zou Siyao reported from Guangzhou
Responsible editor: [Lu Yan]