Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (juvenile rheumatoid arthritis)
It’s natural for parents to want to learn as much as possible
about any disease their child is facing. In the case of juvenile
idiopathic arthritis, however, things can quickly get confusing.
JIA is an umbrella term for several kinds of arthritis, each
with its own unique features. Moreover, there are different ways
to classify these conditions -- and JIA itself is often called
by its old name, JRA (juvenile rheumatoid arthritis). A good
place to start, then, is to simply understand what is happening
in your child’s body. - Like everyone else, your child has an
immune system, a group of organs and cells that work together to
fight off outside invaders like germs and viruses. - In
autoimmune diseases, like JIA, something causes the immune
system to begin attacking the body’s healthy cells and tissues.
- In JIA, the immune system targets the synovium, a special
tissue that lines the joints and provides nourishment and
lubrication for the cartilage (t