Bones are living tissue, and, like all living tissue, they rely on blood vessels to supply blood to keep them alive. In the hip joint, the blood supply reaches the femoral head through the neck of the femur (the femoral neck), a thinner area of bone that connects the ball of the thighbone to its shaft.
A lack of normal blood supply may cause a decrease in oxygen and nutrient delivery to the head of the femur and the bone subsequently dies. This impaired blood supply to the bone is called hip osteonecrosis, also known as avascular necrosis (AVN), and can lead to bone deterioration and joint deformities which often necessitate hip replacement.
