Osteonecrosis during the treatment of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia: A prospective MRI study

Abstract

Corticosteroids have been considered to be the main pathogenetic factor in the development of osteonecrosis in children with malignancies, which was also suggested by our findings. However, there is a lack of systematic prospective studies concerning the natural history and long-term follow-up observations of the prognosis of osteonecrosis, especially in pediatric patients. Based on our results, the lesions are often asymptomatic and cause no disability, and spontaneous improvement or even resolution may occur.