Juvenile Arthritis

Although it is primarily supposed to be a disease that affects the old and infirm, a little known fact about arthritis is that it may even affect young children.



This form of arthritis that affects young children is known as juvenile arthritis. It affects nearly three million children in the United States alone.

The most common form of juvenile arthritis is juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. It is an autoimmune disease and is similar to rheumatoid arthritis that affects adults. The body’s immune system consists of white blood cells that attack any alien organisms in the body.



However in the case of an unfortunate few the white blood cells lose the ability to differentiate friend from foe and begin to attack the healthy tissue in the body. This leads to inflammation and pain and results in juvenile rheumatoid arthritis.

Why exactly the body’s immune system goes berserk is still unknown and medical research is being carried out in laboratories all over the world in an attempt to answer this question. Until a cure is found, systemic treatment is the only option that physicians have to combat this disease. In order to better understand how to help children fight this menace, let us look at some of the common types of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis.

Polyarticular juvenile rheumatoid arthritis.



This form of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis is more prevalent in girls. The symptoms include pain or swelling in at least five joints such as the knees, hips, ankles, feet and neck. The patient may also run a low-grade fever and there may appear small bumps or modules on the body.

Pauciarticular juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. This form of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis affects four or less joints.



The symptoms include pain, stiffness, or swelling in the joints such as the knee and wrist. There may also be an inflammation of the iris.

Systemic juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. This form of arthritis affects the entire body. The symptoms include high fevers the appearance of rashes and enlargement of the spleen and lymph nodes.



The body’s joints are also swollen, painful and stiff.

Diagnosis for all types of juvenile arthritis is carried out based on the child’s medical history, physical examinations, X-rays, and blood tests. The treatment is carried out using a combination of medication, physical therapy, and exercise. Certain cases may even require surgery. As the root cause behind this disease is still unknown the goal of the treatment is to reduce the pain and inflammation and retard the progressive destruction of joints.



This combined with regular physical therapy helps ensure that your child can live healthily and happily in spite of the onset of this disease.

Ensuring that your child takes part in a regular program of exercise is a very important part of the treatment process. Regular exercise ensures that the muscles remain strong and that the joints are able to maintain their full range of motion. Activities such as walking, swimming, and bicycling are highly recommended. High impact sports such as football should be avoided.