Hand (New York, N.Y.)
January 25, 2026 · via Europe PMC
Patient-Related Factors Associated With Scaphoid Proximal Pole Avascular Necrosis Healing.
Jacobi S, Davidovic-Katz E, Richardson M, Moll S, Barrera J, Hacquebord J.
AI summary — for doctors, generated from the abstract only
Hyperlipidaemia, higher BMI and older age were linked to failure of scaphoid proximal pole AVN to heal.
What was studied
Single-centre retrospective review of 62 patients with scaphoid proximal pole avascular necrosis (2018-2024), assessing healing after 4 months or more.
Key findings
- 48.4% (30/62) had AVN resolution.
- Hyperlipidaemia, advanced age and elevated BMI were independently associated with non-healing.
- Surgical results did not differ significantly between vascularised and nonvascularised or no graft.
Clinical relevance
These risk factors can inform prognosis and counselling for scaphoid AVN.
Who should care
Limitations
Retrospective single-centre study of modest size with short minimum follow-up and graft comparisons that are probably underpowered.
Counsel patients with these risk factors about lower healing odds and address modifiable factors.
This is an AI-generated summary of the published abstract, not a clinical recommendation. It may not reflect the full text or subsequent updates — verify against the original source before acting on it.
Abstract
Background
Avascular necrosis (AVN) of the proximal pole is a well-known complication of scaphoid fractures. Avascular necrosis is poorly understood, including the transition from ischemia to necrosis, optimal treatment, and why some AVN heals but others do not. The primary purpose of this study is to evaluate patient-related factors that are associated with healing outcomes in individuals with proximal pole AVN following scaphoid fractures.
Methods
This is a retrospective review of all patients diagnosed with scaphoid proximal pole AVN secondary to a fracture from 2018 to 2024 in a single center. Patient baseline characteristics and comorbidities at time of diagnosis were collected. If the patient underwent surgical management, procedural factors were collected. The primary outcome was AVN healing after 4 months of follow-up.
Results
A total of 62 patients met inclusion criteria. Thirty of 62 (48.4%) went onto proximal pole AVN resolution. Hyperlipidemia (P = .030), advanced age at time of diagnosis (P = .038), and elevated body mass index (BMI) (P = .026) were independent factors associated with lack of AVN healing. For patients who underwent surgical management, there was no significant difference in healing outcomes between use of a nonvascularized, or no graft, and use of a vascularized bone flap (P = .115, P = .886, respectively).
Conclusions
Hyperlipidemia, elevated BMI, and advanced age are patient factors negatively associated with scaphoid proximal pole AVN healing-key information for accurately assessing patient prognosis. For surgical management, the choice of a vascularized bone, nonvascularized bone graft, or no graft does not significantly impact AVN healing.
DOI
10.1177/15589447251414126
PMID
41582392
Research metadata (titles, abstracts, authors, publication dates) is sourced from Europe PMC, which aggregates content from PubMed/MEDLINE, PubMed Central, and other providers under the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM/NCBI). NLM does not claim copyright on abstracts; the original journal publishers or authors may hold rights to the full articles. AI-generated summaries are derived only from the abstract, never the full text, and are always labeled as AI-generated.
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