A histological demonstration of nerves in subchondral bone

Several different staining procedures were carried out on decalcified histological sections from human femoral heads to demonstrate the nerves in subchondral bone. The femoral heads were obtained at surgery from patients with fractures of the femoral neck or osteoarthritic hip joints. The Bodian technique was found to be the most suitable. Serial sections were used in order to disclose the various sources of error. It was not possible to demonstrate nerves in the bone matrix, but they were easily seen in the subchondral bone marrow, after related to the vessels. A comparison of the fracture and osteoarthritic cases revealed an obvious difference; more nerves were seen in osteoarthritis. The method described is considered suitable for further study of the nerves in osteoarthritic femoral heads.