Hockey is a fast and physical sport. Players need to think and act quickly as their team members, opponents, and the puck zip around the ice. Wherever the puck goes, high-speed collisions often follow.
Osteochondritis dissecans is a joint disorder in which a segment of bone and cartilage starts to separate from the rest of the bone as a result of repeated stress or trauma. The injury most commonly occurs in athletes between the ages of 10 and 20.
“It’s pretty intense,” says Grady Finch of Toronto, Ontario. “I enjoy that.”
Grady started playing hockey when he was 4. By the age of 9, he was playing in a AAA league, the highest level a player of his age could attain. Overall, he was in a great place until osteochondritis dissecans gave his hockey future a serious body check.
Knee pain and an unwelcome diagnosis
For Grady, the first sign of a problem was knee pain that grew worse over time. “It crept up slowly until it was clear he needed to see a doctor,” says Grady’s father, David. An MRI revealed he had osteochondritis dissecans in both knees.
The doctor who diagnosed him in Toronto told Grady he needed to avoid any activities that involved running or jumping so his knees could heal. “It affected all my sports,” Grady remembers, “the things I loved doing most.”
“Basically, they told him to stop being a 12-year-old boy,” adds David.
After a long and difficult year, Grady’s left knee locked up one day when he stood up from the couch. Instead of better, his knee seemed worse, and it would be five weeks before they could get an initial consult with an orthopedic surgeon in Toronto. The Finch family was tired of waiting.
In search of an osteochondritis dissecans specialist
Even before the setback with Grady’s left knee, David had been looking online for specialists with experience treating osteochondritis dissecans. He found a list of ROCK (Research in Osteochondritis of the Knee) doctors, which included three specialists at Boston Children’s Hospital. David sent an email to one of them, Dr. Benton Heyworth.
“I sent an email on Sunday night and Dr. Heyworth replied on Monday morning saying he could see…
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