Rheumatology
ImmunoglobulinJuvenile Idiopathic Arthritis
What is juvenile idiopathic arthritis?
Several types of arthritis, all involving chronic (long-term) joint inflammation, fall under the JIA heading. This inflammation begins before patients reach the age of 16, and symptoms must last more than 6 weeks to be called chronic. JIA may involve one or many joints, and may also affect the eyes. It can cause other symptoms such as fevers or rash.How is JIA treated?
The best care for children with arthritis is provided by a pediatric rheumatology team that has extensive experience and can diagnose and manage the complex needs of the child and family most effectively. The core team may consist of a pediatric rheumatologist, physical and occupational therapist, social worker, and nurse specialist. This core team can coordinate care with a child's pediatrician, adult rheumatologists, other physicians (such as an ophthalmologist or orthopedic surgeon), and other health professionals (dentist, nutritionist or psychologist) as well as reach out to schools and additional community resources to ensure that the child receives the best care possible.The overall treatment goal is to control symptoms, prevent joint damage, and maintain function. When only a few joints are involved, a steroid can be injected into the joint before any additional medications are given. Steroids injected into the joint do not have significant side effects. Oral steroids such as prednisone (Deltasone, Orasone, Prelone, Orapred) may be used in certain situations, but only for as short a time and at the lowest dose possible. The long-term use of steroids is associated with side effects such as weight gain, poor growth, osteoporosis, cataracts, avascular necrosis, hypertension, and risk of infection.
Disease modifying drugs - commonly called DMARDs - are added as a second-line treatment when arthritis involves many joints or does not respond to steroid joint injections. DMARDs include methotrexate , leflunamide (Arava), and more recently developed medications known as biologics. The biologics include agents such as etanercept (Enbrel), infliximab (Remicade), adalimumab (Humira), abatacept (Orencia), anakinra (Kineret;), canakinumab (Ilaris), tocilizumab (Actemra), and rituximab (Rituxan). Each of these medications may cause side effects that need to be monitored and discussed with the pediatric rheumatologist treating your child. Many of these treatments are approved for use in children as well as adults. In addition, researchers are developing new treatments.
