AOC - short for everything's A OK...

Jack had his appointment with the hand surgeon this week.

The official diagnosis?

Accessory Ossification Center

I saw the xray. I heard the explanation. I understood it at the moment.

Now, let's see whether I can explain what it means...

Evidently, Jack has a congenital (from birth) area in his thumb which is an accessory (extra) ossification (bone) center. He has bone originating on the side of his thumb which has its own growth plate. Because he is growing so fast these past few months, this area is also growing.

We were able to see his actual IP Joint (interphalangeal joint) much better than we could see it at the time he had surgery at 7 months of age. He has a very small joint with basically no cartilage, therefore no movement of the joint.

While there'e nothing that needs to be done at this time for the AOC, there's also nothing that can be done with his IP joint. We will check back in 6 to 12 months to make sure that the AOC isn't changing the direction in which his thumb grows, in which case, he would need surgery.