OCD of elbow..oats vs. microfracture

Yes, i am looking for the same long term results info. Our son plays baseball (and basketball). He fractured his elbow playing basketball (osteochondial fracture 11x3 mm in the lateral condyle) and the fragment that came off is split into two. He will probably need OATS soon (autograft from knee to elbow), we are just seeing how much it heals on its own first.  Heading to a nationally known ortho hospital for a second opinion/appt. since its a rare fracture. Also looking into Regennex? If anyone has any info. on this surgery it would be appreciated. 

My son plays baseball, and had the OATS procedure done last Februay, he had a condition called Osteochrondritis Dissecans of the elbow, basically there was no blood flow getting to the small bone at end of elbow, and parts becgan chipping off. He was 15 when he had surgery (16 now) If your son has loose fragments, I do not think it will heal on its own....we waited 6 months after diaginoises to see if it would heal o n its own, and it actually got worse. And that was with not throwing a baseball, no basketball (my son likes basketball too), no movement, and I wish we had not waited those 6 months. The surgery itself went well....his surgeon told us that it was the worst elbow he had seen with this condition....my son played through pain for nearly a year, thinking the pain would get better, and not telling us, until he simply couldn't do it anymore. While recovering from his right elbow after surgery, his left elbow began hurting , and we found out he had the same condition as the right elbow, and he had surgery on left elbow last June. (not OATS, just microfracture and drilling). The GOOD news is....after almost a year of physical therapy on both elbows, and knee (from OATS) he is back on the field, and will play baseball this spring on his high school team (hes a sophomore). It was ALOT of therapy, and also it all affected him mentally, because surgeon could not guarantee he would ever play baseball again....but he did all he was told to do, and is stronger than ever. He said his elbows feel better than they did when he was 10 years old! He plays outfield now...but has started working on his pitching again slowly....I never have heard of regennex. Let me know what the other opinions of the surgeons are, and what they decide. If you have any questions let me know. Bottom line, he was playing earlier than what Dr. said. Dr said about a year recovery, he played about 9 months after 1st surgery. Left elbow was not nearly as bad....good luck, and tell your son to be positive!!!!

Thank you!!  Wow this gives me reality of what the surgery may entail. Your son certainly has built a lot of character I am sure. Glad it was successful.  The pictures helps so much. Our son has a fracture, not dissecans which I mentioned. We are approaching six months with no sports, etc. The dr here keeps saying it may take up to a year to heal on its own but to your point when there are fragments it makes me wonder. I think he is also waiting because he knows how complicated the surgery is, hence the reason we are heading the philly children's hospital ortho pediatrics to get a second opinion from a guy who has seen a lot of trauma and elbows. I love the uniform and elbow/arm brace -- we have supportive coaches too which makes a huge difference from a mental standpoint. I will use your quote and give it to our son. Questions: 1) with the oats surgery how long was he in the hospital? If we go to philly (six hours away! wondering about stay there  2) How long did the knee hurt after surgery?  Thank you so much!

Glad I was some help...we are in Florida, and our surgeon also specialized in elbows and sports injuries, we had complete trust in him....the surgery was 4 1/2 hours long. He was able to actually go home the same day....they had put a nerve block in his arm, so believe it or not, at first his knee was more painful. After nerve block wore off, then it was rough. He was out of school a week, and was in wheelchair for 3 weeks (due to how big his highschool was, it was hard for him to get around, and also fear of someone accidently bumping elbow) He didn't need wheelchair at home, just school. He was on strong pain meds for only a week, then just tylonol.....but, I have spoke with other parents that had kids with this surgery having to stay overnight at hospital, and also not needing wheelchair...I guess everyone is different. His knee hurt for I would say about 2 months or so. But he did physical therapy 3 times a week, and that definitely helped. I think all situations are different. When he went in for surgery, the surgeon really didn't know all he was facing until he actually got in there.....thats why it was 4 1/2 hours. And my son had large fragments floating around, and basically a hole in his elbow. I am so happy he is back playing, as you can imagine!!! Please keep me updated on what they say.