pediatrics
Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA)
Introduction
Juvenile idiopathic arthritis is a group of rheumatic diseases that begins by age 16. Arthritis, fever, rash, adenopathy, splenomegaly, and iridocyclitis are typical of some forms. Diagnosis is clinical. Treatment involves intra-articular corticosteroids and disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs. Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is uncommon. The cause of JIA is unknown, but there seems to be a genetic predisposition as well as autoimmune and autoinflammatory pathophysiology. The vast majority of children with JIA have a disease that is distinct from Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) , but in 3 to 5% of children with JIA, the disease is analogous to adult RA. 