Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsCharacteristicsEarly SymptomsProgression and DiagnosisTreatmentSelf-CareSupport and Resources
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Characteristics
Early Symptoms
Progression and Diagnosis
Treatment
Self-Care
Support and Resources
Juvenile arthritis (JA) is an umbrella term describingarthritisconditions that affect children under 16. According to the Arthritis Foundation, JA affects nearly 300,000 children in the United States.
Most types of JA areautoimmune diseaseswhere the immune system malfunctions and attacks healthy tissues.JA is also known as childhood arthritis,juvenile idiopathic arthritis(JIA), and juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA).
The exact causes of JA are unknown, but researchers suspect certain genes and environmental triggers are involved. Most children diagnosed with JA are ages 2 to 5.But children as young as 18 months and as old as 16 years can also develop the condition.
This article will cover juvenile arthritis characteristics, symptoms, treatment, and more.
SDI Productions / Getty Images
Different Types of Arthritis and Pain Characteristics
Characteristics of Juvenile Arthritis
Juvenile arthritis can lead to permanentjoint damage. That means it can affect your child’s ability to walk, play, and care for themselves. It can also result in disability.
There is no cure for JA, but many children can achieveremission, when the disease is not active. Any joint damage will remain but can be treated with surgery if such damage affects function and mobility.
For a long time, it was believed that children would outgrow juvenile arthritis.However, it is now known that JA will continue to be active and worsen without aggressive treatment.
Autoimmune Types
The most common type of JA is believed to be an autoimmune disease, a condition in which the body’s immune system often malfunctions and attacks healthy tissues.In autoimmune JA, thesynovial liningsof joints are attacked, leading toinflammation, pain, stiffness, and tenderness.
What Is Inflammation?Inflammation is the body’s defense against injury, illness, or infection. Signs of inflammation include pain, heat, redness, swelling, and loss of function, although it is possible to experience inflammation without symptoms.Inflammation is either acute (short term) or chronic (long term).Acute inflammation helps the body repair itself. In contrast, chronic inflammation is harmful to your health.
What Is Inflammation?
Inflammation is the body’s defense against injury, illness, or infection. Signs of inflammation include pain, heat, redness, swelling, and loss of function, although it is possible to experience inflammation without symptoms.Inflammation is either acute (short term) or chronic (long term).Acute inflammation helps the body repair itself. In contrast, chronic inflammation is harmful to your health.
Inflammation is the body’s defense against injury, illness, or infection. Signs of inflammation include pain, heat, redness, swelling, and loss of function, although it is possible to experience inflammation without symptoms.
Inflammation is either acute (short term) or chronic (long term).Acute inflammation helps the body repair itself. In contrast, chronic inflammation is harmful to your health.
Inflammation with autoimmune JA can lead tobone erosionandcartilage damage. Bone damage from JA affects bone growth, leading to bones growing at different rates or in abnormal shapes or sizes.
Autoimmune JA falls into different subcategories, including:
Pediatric Osteoarthritis
Pediatric osteoarthritis (OA) is a type of JA that is not autoimmune. OA primarily affects adults but can lead to joint pain and stiffness of growing bones and joints in children.Pediatric OA is sometimes calledearly-onset osteoarthritis.
This type of childhood OA can be a congenital (present at birth) condition that weakens bones, a genetic condition that affects bone and tissue growth like dwarfism, or the result of a traumatic injury like a car accident. It can also occur in children who are severely overweight or who have autoimmune JA.
Causes of Juvenile Arthritis
JA typically occurs when the immune system attacks the body’s own healthy cells and tissues. It is unknown exactly why this happens, but researchers suspect genetics and a person’s environment play a part.
Does Juvenile Arthritis Ever Go Away?
JIA is a chronic disease, which means it can last for months or years. For some people, treatment helps JIA go into remission. Remission may last months or years or over an entire lifetime. Research shows that many children with JIA can enter remission with little or no permanent damage.
Early Symptoms of Juvenile Arthritis
It may take years for a child to receive an appropriate JA diagnosis. But JA has some common early symptoms you may want to look for.
Earlysymptoms of JAcan include:
Anemiaresults from a lack of healthy red blood cells orhemoglobin(a protein found in red blood cells) to carry oxygen to tissues throughout the body.Symptoms of anemiainclude tiredness, weakness, shortness of breath, irregular heartbeat, and pale skin.
If your child is experiencing joint pain andstiffness in the morningalong with any of the above systemic symptoms, you should contact their healthcare provider as soon as possible.
Progressive Symptoms and Steps to Diagnosis
JA is a progressive condition that can become severely worse without treatment. Even so, it is possible to experience remission with early diagnosis and treatment. Some research suggests that progression can be halted to where a child does not experience symptoms, which may extend even into adulthood.
Disease progression will vary from person to person. It may also depend on how advanced the disease was at diagnosis and when treatment started.
Symptoms that indicate disease progression of JA include:
Some children may not experience remission. For them, JA symptoms and progression may continue into adulthood, requiring lifelong treatment and continuous reassessment.Even in these cases, autoimmune arthritis is treatable and manageable, and complications and severe symptoms can be prevented.
Diagnosing Juvenile Arthritis
Your child’s healthcare provider will start with a complete medical history and physical examination to diagnose JA.
For medical history, the healthcare provider will want to know:
The healthcare provider will also examine your child’s joints. With the physical exam, they are looking for swelling, warmth, decreased range of motion, and muscle loss near affected joints.
Lab work, including blood, joint fluid, and tissue tests, will also be requested to rule out other possible causes. These tests might also help classify what type of JA your child has.
Different types of imaging might also be requested to aid in diagnosis. This might includeconventional X-rays,magnetic resonance imaging(MRI), ultrasound, andbone scans.
What Else Could Joint Symptoms Be?Many conditions can mimic JA due to the symptoms they share. This includes bone and joint infections, muscle and bone diseases, and less common rheumatic diseases.A complete evaluation can help your child’s healthcare provider determine and confirm a diagnosis.
What Else Could Joint Symptoms Be?
Many conditions can mimic JA due to the symptoms they share. This includes bone and joint infections, muscle and bone diseases, and less common rheumatic diseases.A complete evaluation can help your child’s healthcare provider determine and confirm a diagnosis.
Creating a Treatment Plan for Juvenile Arthritis
If your child’s healthcare provider suspects or confirms a diagnosis of JA, they will refer you to a pediatric rheumatologist. A pediatricrheumatologistis a medical doctor (M.D.) specializing in diagnosing and treating arthritis conditions in children.
Goals for treating JA include:
Typical medications used in the treatment of JA include:
Oral andtopical NSAIDsare commonly used to treat pediatric OA.Autoimmune types typically need more aggressive treatment, including DMARDs and corticosteroids.
Your child’s healthcare provider may recommend your child work with aphysical therapistto keep joints flexible and in motion and to maintain muscle strength around joints.They may also recommendoccupational therapy. Anoccupational therapistcan suggest support tools (i.e., splints and braces) to protect joints and keep them functional.
If joints have become damaged or no longer function, surgery may be recommended to fix and replace affected joint and bone areas. Fortunately, because of the many available treatment options, most children will never need surgery to manage JA, even in their adult years.
Self-Care for Children With Juvenile Arthritis
Parents and caregivers can help children learn self-care techniques to limit the effects of JA.
The Arthritis Foundation recommends the following self-care tips:
Treating JA Flare-UpsJuvenile arthritis can be unpredictable, and most children with the condition experience periods calledflare-upsin which disease symptoms get worse for short periods.Most flares cause pain and swelling of joints. Additional symptoms of JA flares include:Flu-like symptoms, including fever and nauseaExtreme fatigueSkin rashEye inflammationDepressed moodMost flare-ups can be managed at home with rest and self-care. If flare symptoms last more than a few days or worsen, contact your child’s healthcare provider. They can prescribe a corticosteroid to help manage inflammation and pain or other treatments to help shorten recovery time.
Treating JA Flare-Ups
Juvenile arthritis can be unpredictable, and most children with the condition experience periods calledflare-upsin which disease symptoms get worse for short periods.Most flares cause pain and swelling of joints. Additional symptoms of JA flares include:Flu-like symptoms, including fever and nauseaExtreme fatigueSkin rashEye inflammationDepressed moodMost flare-ups can be managed at home with rest and self-care. If flare symptoms last more than a few days or worsen, contact your child’s healthcare provider. They can prescribe a corticosteroid to help manage inflammation and pain or other treatments to help shorten recovery time.
Juvenile arthritis can be unpredictable, and most children with the condition experience periods calledflare-upsin which disease symptoms get worse for short periods.
Most flares cause pain and swelling of joints. Additional symptoms of JA flares include:
Most flare-ups can be managed at home with rest and self-care. If flare symptoms last more than a few days or worsen, contact your child’s healthcare provider. They can prescribe a corticosteroid to help manage inflammation and pain or other treatments to help shorten recovery time.
Your child’s healthcare team can be a helpful resource. They can offer referrals tosocial workersand therapists. They can also give you information aboutpain management, nutrition, medication management, balancing school and treatment, and more.
It is also helpful to work with your child’s school and request any accommodations your child might need, including a plan for what to do when symptoms flare or when your child has medical appointments. The school should also be aware if your child needs additional time or assistance going from one classroom to another or needs treatment at school.
Living with JA can be stressful for your child. Encourage them to speak up if they are having difficulty coping with the effects of the condition or with their emotions. It might be helpful for your child to talk to a mental health professional or join asupport groupfor children and families managing the effects of JA.
Summary
Many types of juvenile arthritis are autoimmune arthritis, where the immune system malfunctions and attacks the joints and other healthy tissues. The exact cause of JA is unknown, but researchers believe genetics and environmental factors contribute to its development.
The earliest symptoms of JA are joint pain and stiffness, and systemic symptoms like fatigue and fever. JA is considered a progressive condition that gets worse over time. However, many different treatment options are available to slow down the disease’s effects and may even lead to remission.
For some young people, JA may progress and become adult arthritis. Even in these situations, the disease can still be managed, and joint damage and disability are preventable. If your child is experiencing signs of JA, contact their healthcare provider immediately.
Having a normal and active life with JA is possible. Support groups are a helpful option for children with JA to interact with other children struggling similarly. It is also crucial to help your child manage their feelings about JA and to encourage them to speak up if they are struggling to cope or feel depressed.
16 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Arthritis Foundation.Juvenile arthritis.
American Academy of Pediatrics Section on Rheumatology.Juvenile idiopathic arthritis.
American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.Juvenile arthritis—types and treatment.
Harvard Health Publishing.Inflammation.
Barut K, Adrovic A, Şahin S, Kasapçopur Ö.Juvenile idiopathic arthritis.Balkan Med J. 2017;34(2):90-101. doi:10.4274/balkanmedj.2017.0111
Haider MZ.Osteoarthritis In children: overview of the prevalence, burden, pathology and management.ARR.2023;8(2). doi:10.19080/arr.2023.08.555734
Horton DB, Shenoi S.Review of environmental factors and juvenile idiopathic arthritis.Open Access Rheumatol. 2019;11:253-267. doi:10.2147/OARRR.S165916
Shoop-Worrall SJW, Kearsley-Fleet L, Thomson W, Verstappen SMM, Hyrich KL.How common is remission in juvenile idiopathic arthritis: A systematic review.Semin Arthritis Rheum. 2017;47(3):331-337. doi:10.1016/j.semarthrit.2017.05.007
Kasapçopur Ö, Barut K.Treatment in juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and new treatment options.Turk Pediatri Ars. 2015;50(1):1-10. doi:10.5152/tpa.2015.2229
Ravelli A, Consolaro A, Horneff G, et al.Treating juvenile idiopathic arthritis to target: recommendations of an international task force.Ann Rheum Dis. 2018;77(6):819-828. doi:10.1136/annrheumdis-2018-213030
National Institute of Arthritis and Musclusketal Conditions.Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA): Diagnosis, treatment, and steps to take.
Jones AP, Clayton D, Nkhoma G, et al.Different corticosteroid induction regimens in children and young people with juvenile idiopathic arthritis: the SIRJIA mixed-methods feasibility study. Southampton (UK): NIHR Journals Library; 2020 Jul. (Health Technology Assessment, No. 24.36.) Chapter 2, Literature review on the use of corticosteroids in juvenile idiopathic arthritis.
Arthritis Foundation.Treatment for juvenile arthritis.
Arthritis Foundation.Flares and JIA: What you should know.
NYU Langone Health.Support for juvenile arthritis.
Meet Our Medical Expert Board
Share Feedback
Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!What is your feedback?OtherHelpfulReport an ErrorSubmit
Was this page helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
What is your feedback?OtherHelpfulReport an ErrorSubmit
What is your feedback?
