Symptoms of arthritis in children

Every child will always encounter some diseases on the road to growth. Among them, childhood arthritis is a relatively serious disease. It will have a certain impact on the child's health and will also cause certain pain to the child. If such a disease occurs, it must be treated in time to get good relief, otherwise it will also affect the health of the body. Therefore, it is necessary for us to understand the symptoms of childhood arthritis.

Symptoms of arthritis in children

1. Acute arthritis with joint pain

⑴ Trauma: Trauma such as fracture and joint blood effusion causes acute joint pain. Such cases usually have a clear history of trauma and can be diagnosed by inquiring about medical history, joint puncture, or X-ray examination. Ultrasound examination of the joints can help distinguish whether joint swelling is caused by effusion in the joint cavity or swelling of the soft tissue around the joint.

⑵ Septic arthritis: Most infections are caused by blood circulation. The affected joints show symptoms of redness, swelling, heat, pain and limited function, which are more common in large joints. The synovial fluid is turbid, the white blood cell count in the joint cavity exudate is >5.0 × 109/l, the erythrocyte sedimentation rate is increased, and the bacterial examination is positive. The pathogens are mostly Gram-positive bacteria. Synovial fluid examination was positive for rare pathogens. The vast majority of cases involve a single joint, but approximately 4-6% may affect multiple joints.

⑶ Osteomyelitis: Periarticular pain caused by osteomyelitis is sometimes also considered as acute joint pain in children and needs to be differentiated. In the early stages of osteomyelitis, bone X-ray examination only shows swelling of the soft tissue around the infected bone. Bone scan is an effective diagnostic method.

⑷ Reactive arthritis and post-infectious arthritis: Before the onset of arthritis, a history of respiratory tract or urinary tract infection, accompanied by conjunctivitis, urethritis or balanitis may help with diagnosis. Acute rheumatic fever is an inflammatory disease caused by type A beta-hemolytic streptococcal pharyngitis. It has an acute onset, fever, and migratory arthritis (pain), often affecting the knees and ankles, with the small joints of the hands and feet less frequently affected. In recent years, a form of poststreptococcal arthritis has been recognized that manifests as prolonged polyarthritis (pain) distinct from rheumatic fever.

⑸ Post-infectious arthritis: Children with post-infectious arthritis often have a family history of spondyloarthritis, and most of them are HLA-B27 positive. Its clinical manifestations may be short-term, severe joint pain, but a small number of patients may develop into chronic arthritis.

2. Chronic arthritis with joint pain:

⑴ Systemic juvenile idiopathic arthritis: The main manifestations are fever, rash, hepatosplenomegaly, lymphadenopathy and arthritis.

⑵ Oligoarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis: Within the first 6 months of onset, ≤4 joints are affected. The disease starts in early childhood and mainly affects the large joints of the lower limbs.

⑶ Polyarticular juvenile idiopathic arthritis (rheumatoid factor + and rheumatoid factor -): within the first 6 months of onset, ≥5 joints are affected, and the clinical features are symmetrical polyarthritis, especially the small joints of the fingers and toes;

⑷ Psoriatic juvenile idiopathic arthritis: Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory disease of the bone and joint system. Its clinical characteristics include oligoarthritis, distal interphalangeal arthritis, asymmetric or symmetric polyarthritis, and axial or spinal arthritis in children with psoriasis. Associated with hla-b27.

⑸ Arthritis associated with enthesitis: Enthesitis refers to inflammatory lesions at the attachment point of the tendon end to the bone or at the attachment point of the tendon, ligament and joint capsule to the bone. Symptoms include local pain, swelling, tenderness, or slight redness and heat. Severe and persistent lesions can cause cortical erosion, hyperplasia, and ankylosis.

㈡ Systemic connective tissue diseases such as systemic lupus erythematosus, scleroderma, dermatomyositis, Behcet's disease, mixed connective tissue disease, polyarteritis nodosa, Kawasaki disease and Henoch-Schonlein purpura can all be associated with joint pain.

㈢Malignancy-related joint pain Leukemia, neuroblastoma and bone tumors can manifest as acute joint pain. When the child's general condition is poor, especially when accompanied by anemia, leukopenia and thrombocytopenia, and increased blood lactate dehydrogenase, the possibility of this disease should be considered.

㈣Other diseases such as diabetes, hemophilia, rickets, growing pains, vitamin C deficiency and mercury poisoning may also cause joint pain

Many diseases can achieve good treatment effects if they can be treated in the early stages of the disease, so it is necessary for us to learn more about the symptoms of the disease. In fact, many diseases are not just for adults, such as childhood arthritis. After understanding the symptoms of childhood arthritis, when such a disease occurs, it is necessary to treat it in time. Do not blindly give your child medication. Go to a regular hospital for examination and treatment, and listen more to the doctor's opinions and suggestions.