The war on RA: Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA)

Part 3 of the war on RA was posted on January 29, 2017.

If the war seems difficult for the majority of us, it can be overwhelming for the youngest of us who suffer from juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). The American College of Rheumatology estimates there are about 300,000 children in the United States who suffer from JIA. According to the American College of Rheumatology, there are four subvariants of the disease: oligoarticular JIA (most common), polyarticular JIA (most like RA); and enthesitis-related JIA. Recently a former subvariant of this condition; systemic onset JIA was recently reclassified as an Autoinflammatory disease.

The front on this part of the war on RA can be both hopeful and devastating, depending on where I visited. According to aboutkidshealth, oligoarticular JIA (oJIA) patients are mostly girls, and they are divided into two groups: those who develop the condition before 4 years of age, who are termed oligoarticular-persistent arthritis, and those diagnosed after 4, who are diagnosed with oligoarticular-extended arthritis. Both of these types of JIA impact up to five separate joints — usually knee, ankle, wrist and/or elbow joints.

To see the full article, please go to the click this link for the CreakyJoints website.

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