Juvenile Arthritis Awareness Month

Arthritis can test the patience and limits of even the best of adults, but when children are stricken with this autoimmune disease, it feels as if nature has played a cruel joke on the  youngest among us. Over 300,000 children have some form of Juvenile Arthritis (JA), often cited as an “invisible illness.” A large percentage of these children live with the silent pain of JA for years until they are finally diagnosed. With July being Juvenile Arthritis Awareness Month, steps are being taken to heighten the attention given to this otherwise quiet disease.

Arthritis—an all-inclusive term meaning joint inflammation—is a nagging disease that affects millions of Americans each year. An ongoing, painful disease, chronic arthritis seems to be low on the radar of important diseases. With almost 300,000 children and teens under the age of 18 (not to mention the millions of adults) silently suffering from this condition currently, arthritis should not be a low-priority disease. That’s what the Juvenile Arthritis Alliance [1] (JAA) as part of The Arthritis Foundation is trying to change—especially during the month of July—in order to help fund the research in order to find a cure or preventative measure.

The Childhood Arthritis & Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA) is a nationally recognized group of pediatric rheumatologists specializing in these types of childhood arthritis cases. This group puts their collective heads together and researches different approaches to the illness and tries to answer crucial clinical questions through their combined effort. Currently CARRA is working on a blind study of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA)—also known as juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) where 5 or more joints are affected; although there are some forms that encompass 4 or less joints—in order to decide whether or not early aggressive therapy that may work in adult rheumatoid arthritis cases can transfer over to treating the same disease in children.

JA is one of the most common diseases among children occurring in the United States today. Estimated costs to the economy for JA care both medically and at home incur around $128 billion  each year.

The biggest myth surrounding arthritis is that it is an “old persons” disease. The statistics speak for themselves when most of the cases documented in America account for people under the age of 60; contrary to popular opinion, I think it’s safe to say “arthritic” and “old” aren’t interchangeable anymore. With symptoms ranging from joint pain, swelling, stiffness, and limited range of motion to joint cartilage and bone damage due to deformities occurring in the joints, arthritis would not be fun to have at any age, but especially not the age of hopscotch and jump rope; climbing trees and swimming laps; playing tag and riding bikes.

Join your local government or community by helping JA become a disease of the past so future generations won’t be hindered by an inability to move. Become an advocate for change by joining the registry [2] to include JA in Congress by helping get more attention from the FDA and hopefully more research and care given to those suffering from JA. You can also make donations online or attend or plan an event to help raise awareness for JA in your town by visiting The Arthritis Foundation.
 

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