Other names used for juvenile arthritis are juvenile chronic arthritis, juvenile idippathic arthritis, and Still's disease. These names are somewhat misnomers. Juvenile chronic arthritis is a misnomer since juvenile arthritis is not always chronic. Still's disease is a name which should be used for a very specific type of childhood arthritis.
In juvenile arthritis, the inflammation can cause redness redness, swelling, warmth, and soreness in the joints, although many children do not complain of joint pain. Any joint can be affected and inflammation may limit the mobility of affected joints. One type of juvenile arthritis can also affect internal organs.
Doctors classify juvenile arthritis into three types based on the number of joints involved, the symptoms, and the presence or absence of certain antibodies found by a blood test. These classifications help the doctor determine how the disease will progress and whether the internal organs or skin is affected.
The three types are:
- Pauciarticular
- Polyarticular
- Systemic
Sources:
Primer on the Rheumatic Diseases. Arthritis Foundation. Thirteenth edition.
