HOME HELP CONTACT US SUBSCRIPTIONS CME ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Rapid Responses: Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when Rapid Responses are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services E-mail this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to My File Cabinet Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via CrossRef Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Goldmuntz, E. A. Articles by White, P. H. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Goldmuntz, E. A. Articles by White, P. H. Related Collections Collagen Vascular and Other Multisystem Disorders Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis:

A Review for the Pediatrician

The first 300 words of the full text of this article appear below.

	Introduction

 
Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is the most common rheumatic disease of childhood. It also is one of the more common chronic diseases of childhood, occurring as frequently as juvenile diabetes mellitus, four times more frequently than cystic fibrosis and sickle cell anemia, and 10 times more frequently than acute lymphoblastic leukemia, hemophilia, or muscular dystrophy. JIA is a new classification of juvenile arthritis developed by the International League Against Rheumatism (ILAR) that is used worldwide; it is replacing the previous American classification of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA). The cause of JIA is unknown, but substantial evidence suggests that the pathogenesis is autoimmune. The diagnosis of JIA is one of exclusion and is made by using a combination of historical, clinical, and laboratory data. The disease course is highly variable, and in the past, JIA had been viewed as a more benign illness than is recognized currently. Recent data reveal that a substantial number of children diagnosed with JIA have active disease that persists into adulthood and results in functional limitation. Thus, the management of JIA has become more aggressive earlier in the course of disease to limit permanent disability.

	Definitions

 
JIA is defined as the presence of objective signs of arthritis in at least one joint for more than 6 weeks in a child younger than age 16 years after other types of childhood arthritis have been excluded. Arthritis is defined as the presence of swelling of the joint or two or more of the following: limitation of motion, tenderness, pain with motion, or joint warmth. Many causes of arthritis must be excluded before JIA can be diagnosed definitively (Table 1). These causes include, but are not limited to, infectious and postinfectious etiologies (septic arthritis, acute rheumatic fever, Lyme disease), hematologic and neoplastic disease, connective tissue diseases (systemic lupus erythematosus, . . . [Full Text of this Article]

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Facebook    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				S. M. L. Tse and R. M. Laxer Approach to Acute Limb Pain in Childhood Pediatr. Rev., May 1, 2006; 27(5): 170 - 180. [Full Text] [PDF]