Almost everyone is aware of a disease known as arthritis. It is also known that such a disease causes pain and swelling in the joints and furthermore, most people think of this disease as being an old person’s disease. The truth of the fact is that such a condition can affect very young people as well; and, it can affect children that have not even passed their sixth birthday. Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis is a condition that can even strike a six month old baby which makes this bad news indeed for mothers of young infants.

Confusing And Disheartening

Another piece of disturbing information that will confuse and dishearten many parents is that it is believed that as many as half a million young American children are affected by some form of arthritis or the other. What’s more, the most common form of juvenile arthritis is the one known as juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) that affects a tenth of those half million young American children.

Still worse news lies in store for American parents because even the exact causes of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis are yet to be identified though research has been able to show that the disease is caused by malfunctioning immune system in which blood cells are not able to distinguish between healthy and unhealthy cells. The confusion results in the immune system releasing chemicals meant to ward off enemies and which inadvertently results in damage to healthy cells – leading to further pain as well as inflammation.

Even viruses can cause juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and the same is the case with the presence of certain kinds of genes in the makeup of the child’s system. Most often, high temperature accompanies juvenile rheumatoid arthritis – along with swelling of the joints near the knuckles as well as in four or more other joints.

Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis can take different forms with the three main ones being polyarticular arthritis, pauciarticular arthritis and systemic juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. The first named affects girls more than it does boys. The second may affect as many as four joints and symptoms include stiffness, pain and swelling in the joints. The last named affects the body as a whole and symptoms are high temperature that can just as suddenly return to normal and then shoots up once more.

In the case of rheumatoid arthritis symptoms there are a few things that help a doctor identify that this condition has developed and is ruining the life of patients; pain is common, swelling and inflammation too; and it is a long term disease that will affect the person for the rest of their lives.

Doctors usually need to take X-rays as well as require testing the blood of the affected child before they are able to tell which particular form of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis has developed and only then can a proper treatment be prescribed.