Anatomy & Physiology 1

Michael Tona

Dr. Hosseini

Anatomy & Physiology 1

October 14th, 2014

Bone Disease Paper

Fibrous Dysplasia (FD)

There are many types of diseases that can attack the human body. They can be muscular, genetic, or even bone diseases. Fibrous Dysplasia, also known as FD, is a rare and dangerous bone disease that can virtually attack every bone in the body (polyostotic), or just one bone alone (monostotic). The severity of this disease can cause tremendous amounts of pain and can cover a wide spectrum of the human body.

FD, a genetic disorder, is an abnormal bone growth in the body. It is a skeletal disorder in which the bone-forming cells fail to mature and produce too much fibrous tissue. The prognosis of this disease is usually determined and based off of the severity of the condition and what symptoms are occurring. Fibrous dysplasia can affect any bone in the human skeleton, but are most commonly found in skull, thigh, shin, ribs, upper arm and pelvis. Around 75-80% of cases of FD are monostotic, while the rest are polyostotic. It is diagnosed in childhood or early adulthood, but can still be found later on in adulthood. A diagnosis is made after a doctor views an X-Ray, MRI screening, or performs a physical examination. Some signs that can lead a doctor to make his or her diagnosis is that the patient has bone sores, unusual skin pigmentation, difficulty walking, or endocrine gland issues. X-Rays may show abnormal area of bone that typically has an appearance similar to that of ground glass, which means that it is nontransparent, yet it can still give off light in an X-Ray. They also can show the bowing of the bone or the expansion of the involved area of the bone. In some cases, a doctor may need to obtain a small bone specimen (a biopsy) to confirm the diagnosis. Males and females of any ethnicity or race are equally affected by fibrous dysplasia. Also, fibrous dysplasia cannot be inherited through family.

Fibrous Dysplasia may cause few or no signs and symptoms, particularly if the condition is mild. Most mild cases of fibrous dysplasia are asymptomatic, which means that they show or feel no signs of pain or deformity. They are usually found incidentally during other exams or check ups. For more rare, severe FD cases, symptoms that can occur are bone pain, bone deformities, fractures, or even nerve entrapment. Severe deformity can lead to loss of vision or hearing when facial bones are involved. When the leg and pelvis bones are severely deformed, arthritis may develop in nearby joints. Rarely, fibrous dysplasia may be associated with abnormalities in the hormone-producing glands of your endocrine system. These abnormalities may include very early puberty, thyroid gland problems, or light brown spots on the skin. Early puberty occurs more in females than males, which is caused by the overactivity of the ovaries. Along with the thyroid gland, other glands such as the adrenal, pituitary, and parathyroid glands can also be affected and become overactive by FD. FD can also affect one’s ability to sleep and can cause one to start walking with a limp. If the pain of one’s bone or bones’ does not go away with rest or limits one from weight-bearing activities, it could be a sign of FD. One should visit a doctor immediately if any of these signs or symptoms start to occur.

Although there is no exact cure for fibrous dysplasia, there are many different types of treatment available for those in need. Since there is no known cure, treatments are specifically designed to reduce and relieve the excruciating pain patients are going through. Some treatments include oral medications that treats the onset of pain or strengthens one’s bones. Also, one can go through pain management therapy to help overcome the pain in one’s body as a form of treatment. For more severe and painful cases, surgery is recommended to prevent fractures. Surgery is usually needed for patients with symptomatic lesions that have not responded to types of treatment. It is also needed when patients with displaced fractures, hairline fractures, progressive deformity, or with the presence of cancer. When surgery is needed, stabilization of the bone with metal implants, such as rods or plates and screws, can be useful to fix a fracture or deformity or to prevent bone breakage.

Overall fibrous dysplasia is a rare, agonizing, disease that attacks the bones of one’s body. Unfortunately, there is no cure yet to be discovered, but there are many different types of treatment that one can receive to reduce the pain. Hopefully, newer generations of medications will become more advanced and helpful for those suffering from FD and hopefully a cure for it can be discovered in the upcoming future.