Osteonecrosis

What Is Osteonecrosis?

Osteonecrosis is a bone disease that occurs when there is a reduced blood flow to the bone – it is often referred to as bone death. Osteonecrosis of the jaw is the most common presentation of the disease in association with patients who take Fosamax.

What Causes Osteonecrosis?

Osteonecrosis can be caused when a broken bone does not heal properly and the blood supply to the bone is cut off. Osteonecrosis of the jaw has appeared in patients who have been treated with IV bisphosphonates in order to treat lung cancer, breast cancer, multiple myeloma and other bone diseases. However, there are a small but increasing number of cases in which patients taking Fosamax to strengthen bone mass after being diagnosed with osteoporosis are presenting symptoms of osteonecrosis of the jaw.

The symptoms of osteonecrosis of the jaw include:

• Pain in the joint.
• Swelling of soft-tissue around the jaw.
• Infections.
• Teeth becoming loose.
• Drainage from the jaw.
• Exposed bone of the jaw.

Many of these symptoms show up after the patient has had a tooth extracted or other invasive jaw surgeries, and it’s often the dentists who diagnose osteonecrosis of the jaw.

What Can Be Done to Prevent and Treat Osteonecrosis of the Jaw?

For those who are concerned about osteonecrosis of the jaw as well as those who have been diagnosed, there are a few steps that can be taken to reduce the imapct of the disease:

• Be sure that you are able to maintain oral hygiene as it will help to reduce the risk of infection.
• If you wear dentures, you should be sure that they are checked and adjusted by your dentist regularly to preven damage to gum tissue.
• Consider dental extractions only as an option of last resort.

Tagged as: fosamax osteonecrosis, osteonecrosis