Postsurgical radiation therapy for prophylaxis of heterotopic ossification.

Radiation therapy has been shown to be the most effective prophylactic measure against heterotopic ossification (HO) in surgically repaired hip fractures. Current research is seeking the minimum effective dose of radiation. The authors present four case reports and a review of the literature on HO.

Pathological fracture in haemoglobinopathy: treatment by irradiation.

A patient suffering from thalassaemia, with extreme osteoporosis, coarse trabeculation and cortical thinning of the bones, developed a pathological fracture of the left hip. This was treated by a single dose of radiotherapy. It is suggested that the radiotherapy facilitated the healing process by eliminating the causative factor of the fracture, which was the expanding and over-proliferating bone marrow.