What Exactly Is Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis?

Juvenile idiopathic arthritis is typically a form of arthritis that is characterized by its being persistent and which affects one or even more joints and which begins before the child has reached the age of sixteen and which also lasts for about six weeks or more. Furthermore, juvenile idiopathic arthritis can be of three main types that include polyarticular arthritis, pauciarticular arthritis and systemic arthritis.

Polyarticular, Pauciarticular And Systemic Arthritis

Polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis affects at least five joints while pauciarticular arthritis affects four or fewer joints and systemic arthritis is characterized by presence of fever that is not only high but which is spiking and is accompanied by a rash and the number of joints affected are variable.

There is as yet no clear explanation regarding what causes juvenile idiopathic arthritis though it is suspected that the causes are viral and genetic as well as related to the immune system. There are a wide variety of symptoms that you as a concerned and responsible parent must look for that can help you know when your child is down with juvenile idiopathic arthritis. These symptoms include joint pain when the child is moving, warmth in the joints, limited range of motion, tenderness in the joints and feeling very stiff upon waking and the joints also tend to swell up.

Juvenile idiopathic arthritis is different to adult rheumatoid arthritis in that it will affect the larger joints including the wrists, knees and also ankles and will not affect the smaller joints quite so much.

Parents should also remember that juvenile idiopathic arthritis is not just a disease that concerns just the affected child because the other family members are affected as well as they will need to help the child manage their pain and also stiffness. This means that the parent should shoulder the responsibility of making the right decisions to help the child cope with their condition and this they can only do by being aware of the common symptoms of this form of juvenile arthritis.

Once the parent is sure that their child has developed juvenile idiopathic arthritis then it is up to them to show the child to a rheumatologist at the earliest so that the condition can be diagnosed properly and then treated.

On the other hand, juvenile chronic arthritis is a group of what are known as Systemic Inflammatory Disorders that affect children that have not yet attained the age of sixteen. This condition was first identified as early as in the year 1864 when four cases affecting children aged twelve were discovered and described though the first real overview of the condition was only made and published in the year 1891.