Chronic arthritis in children

Abstract

Chronic inflammatory arthritides in children include a wide range of various diseases. One of the main concerns of physicians who treat these disorders is the risk of permanent physical disability resulting from joint damage. Actual classification relies mainly on clinical features, particularly the number of joints affected at onset, although the general feeling is that chronic childhood arthritis exists in many different entities gathered together under the common names juvenile chronic arthritis or juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. The past 2 years were rather fertile in debates for proposing a progression for more objectivity in nomenclature, which was the theme of the Pediatric Rheumatology Study Group session at the American College of Rheumatology annual meeting held in Atlanta in 1992. The viewpoints from North America and Europe addressed at this meeting were published in a supplement of the Journal of Rheumatology in 1993. A debate on this topic was also organized at the International League Against Rheumatism Congress held in Barcelona in 1993. At present, the main criteria rely on clinical experience and natural history of the diseases and on biology and immunogenetics. Another important concern among pediatric rheumatologists is efficacy of treatment. Questions include, "Are we doing enough?" and "How safe are the therapeutic strategies?" In this review some of the recent studies that may be important for classification and nomenclature and therapy and management are discussed.