Our son (now 14 and in 8th grade) was diagnosed with OCD when he was 11. He sat out from baseball for about 4 months with the hope that the lesion would heal without surgery. He then played with no further problems until last summer (13) when the OCD lesion (>10mm) separated and lodged in his elbow joint (resulting in significant pain and inability to straighten his arm). After considering his surgical options and seeking three different expert opinions, in September, we decided to go with his primary ortho's advice, which was arthroscopic surgery to remove the loose body, debridement and possible microfracture. Fortunately, when the surgeon got inside the elbow, he found that the lesion had already started to heal (fill in with new cartilage) so he removed the loose body and did not go forward with the debridement or microfracture. Looking back, we believe the lesion may have actually separated in June, but did not lodge in the joint until August so it had time to begin healing prior to the surgery. (Note: Before the surgery, we discussed having the surgeon perform the more involved OAT procedure because we know that our son will want to continue playing sports long-term, and many articles indicated that the long-terms success rate with the OAT procedure was very high. However, our surgeon recommended going with the less intrusive procedure first with the understanding that if it did not work, our son could then undergo the OAT procedure.)
Surgery took place in late September. Surgeon had son moving the elbow within a week and started physical therapy 2X/week within two weeks of surgery, which continued through January. By the end of physical therapy, he had full range of motion back in is elbow with no pain.
Son started hitting around Christmas and started a throwing program in early January. Played his first baseball game in early February and has had no problems with the OCD area this spring playing a full schedule, while also playing basketball. (Note: We have not let him pitch, but he has caught some games, and otherwise played various positions in the field.) We keep a very close eye on him to make sure he isn't experiencing any pain or range of motion issues, and so far so good.
One thing that we believe helped his recovery is he was VERY highly motivated to get back to baseball and other sports. As a result, he was kind of a fanatic with his physical therapy, and he and continues with his PT and other exercises everyday. Also, to make him continue to feel part of his team, his travel coaches allowed him to take on a physical trainer role while he couldn't throw or hit. He developed a speed/strength training regimen for the team that they continue to do at practice. Having a great supporting cast of family, coaches and teammates is key.
I'm sorry to have created such a long post, but reading about other families dealing with the same condition has really helped me in dealing with my son's OCD. If you have any questions regarding our son's ongoing OCD journey or would like to discuss your son's options, feel free to PM me. I wish you and your son all the best!