Why Is a Plastic Surgeon Treating AVN?

When considering the types of procedures a plastic surgeon performs, it may seem strange that a plastic surgeon would be treating avascular necrosis. However, having extensive experience in performing plastic surgery procedures actually provides a cutting edge in treating AVN. AVN is not a bone disease but rather a disease of blood supply to the bone. The term is avascular simply means no blood supply. This loss can occur for a variety of reasons but results in the bone starving from the lack of blood supply. This starvation leads to osteonecrosis, or bone death, also known as avascular necrosis. Once the bone starts to die, the patient develops symptoms like pain and difficulty walking. Most often, AVN patients are referred to an orthopedist or bone doctor who recommends core decompression or hip replacement, however, these doctors are treating the symptoms of AVN, the dying and dead bone, not the cause, which is the lack of blood flow to the bone.

Dr. Adam Saad has extensive training and has devoted his career to microsurgery. Microsurgery involves moving tissues from one part of the body to another and then re-establishing the blood supply under a microscope, all performed with sutures thinner than human hair and barely seen with the naked eye. Dr. Saad’s plastic and microsurgery training and expertise inspired him to learn about AVN and how it can be treated with the use of microsurgery.

Dr. Saad treats the cause of the AVN by bringing new healthy tissues with new blood supply to the starving bone. This treatment can obviate the need for a hip replacement and allow the bone to heal itself. This microsurgery, performed by a plastic surgeon, re-establishes the blood flow to treat the “bone” disease.

To see if you are a candidate for the avascular necrosis program at the Institute for Advanced Reconstruction, please fill out the patient contact form.