12 year old son | Arthritis Information

 

Hello all,

I am new to this site and JRA. Actually my 12 year old son is probably going to be diagnosed with it on Monday. He has had joint pain in all joints for a couple months with recent swelling in the right ankle/foot/toes, left hand, and right elbow. His sed rate was 30mm. He is managing his pain with 400 mg of Motrin so far. He is a very competitive travel hockey player. He has the potential and dream of playing college. Is this something that he will not be able to continue? Will hockey aggravate his inflammation/joints?? I was also wondering if there are certain foods he should avoid??? such as Milk, meat, eggs, etc... This has been the most stressful time of my life. My son is taking it in stride but does not understand how this will progress. Is there a chance he may grow out of this? Is there a chance this can be caused by strep and treated? Thanks for listening to my stress and ton of questions.

 

 

Teech738682.6255439815

Dear Teech,

I am also new to this site. I have a 13 year old son who still has not been dx. He's being treated by a ped rheum for the past 5 months. Symptems started roughly 2 yrs ago. I just kept telling him it was growing pains. This summer, syptoms had gotten pretty severe.His blood work is showing a sed rate of 53, pos ana and ssa, although he is rf neg.He's been on naproxen for 2 months. Getting ready to start plaguenil. I also hope my son will grow out of this. It is starting to take it's toll on him. He has severe pain and mild inflamation in his feet, ankles, knee, hips,wrists, and fingers. I know what you are going through. It's tough.

Hi Teech & Krystal,

My name is Pam, I have a 12 year old son that has recently after many years with problems and not being able to get Dr's to listen has finally been diagnosed with JRA.

There is a site that was just started by a mom like us for mom's like us:0)

Here is the link:

http://www.gossiping.net/phpBB2/index.php?mforum=kaytyray

I hope you will check it out and introduce yourselves, the site is just beginning to grow and I know we'd all love to have you both join us.

I'll look for you there,

Pam

These questions are good ones.  And unfortunately, the answers are all it depends.  It frustrates me to say that. I was dx'ed when I was 7 with seronegative polyarticular JRA.  In case you don't know that just means it's in many joints and unfortunately doesn't show in my blood.  I've never had a positive rheumatoid factor and my SED rate, while elevated at times has never been horribly elevated.   And it was 20+ years ago when they did not treat JRA as aggressively as they do now.
One thing I will say is don't just rely on anti-inflammatories.  They work well for helping inflammation but do nothing to slow the disease progress.   I was never treated with a disease modifying anti-rheumatic drug (DMARD) until 3 years ago.  Because of this, I have irreparable joint damage.  The side effects of DMARDs are admittedly scary. But so is joint damage and lasting, daily pain from joint damage.  
For me diet and food avoidance was no help.  Tried it all.  And saw no benefits.  Some people have success with it. 
JRA can remit and some kids do in fact outgrow it.   I went into remission as a teen but, lived with the aforementioned damage.  And my RA came back with the birth of my son. 
As for hockey, it's hard to say whether it will cause problems or just simply keep him active. Also, only your son can decide if it does indeed cause him pain, whether it's worth the pain or not.  
One other thing, be honest with him about this. I know many kids who weren't told how serious this can be and when they later found out, were devastated.  I was fortunate that my docs didn't keep things from me...I knew at a young age the consequences of RA.  They held nothing back.  Yes it was scary but it gave me a greater understanding of it.  
There is a type of infectious arthritis that can be treated.  But, I've not done much reading on it...simply because I haven't.   My understanding of RA and JRA is that it's the immune system mistakenly attacking the joints and synovium as invaders.  There are many theories as to the cause of RA as well.  
Aside from being an adult who had JRA, I'm also dealing with watching my 3 yr old son who has complaints of pain.  One doc wrote it off as he was mimicking me or that he wanted attention.  Which given my history was an unacceptable comment.  The other ped felt given family history, it was enough to run labs and see a ped ortho.  Bastian's labs are fine and the ortho took x-rays and said they were fine...but he wanted to keep an eye on him because the complaints of pain combined with family history were enough to need that.   The pain has cycled and now we have an appt with a ped rheumy.   So, my comments on DMARDs and their importance and also the importance of being honest aren't just from my childhood but also from the perspective of a parent possibly facing this in her son.  But, I look at it this way, I'm one of the best people to deal with a kid with JRA in my eyes...been there done that type thing!
Hope this helps. 

Thank you for your reply. I have heard many people talkng of the negative side affects of DMARDS but nobody really saying what these sideaffects are. Could you elaborate on these sideaffects without sugar coating. Thank you again for your thoughtfulness and time in responding to me.

ps- I have heard that vinegar, eggs, meat can trigger flare ups. hjave you ever heard this? -AND- Does azulfidene slow the progress or just the inflammation??

Teech7

Teech738683.5180439815

I have JRA, and have never had a flare-up that has been triggered by food.

Hi Teech,

I just wanted to check in and see how your apt went today.  I know from your initial post you were expecting a diagnosis today and I know the anxiety level had to be high.

I have been thinking about you and your son and would love to hear from you.  Our boys are the same age:0)

Feel free to pm me if you would like, I would be happy to hear from you.

Hi I also Have a 12 year old son with Joint pain(shoulders, elbows, knees, back) This has been going on for months. His dr recommended Chiropractic, PT, they did do blood work for RA since I have sero neg RA. We are going back to the doctor again today with my guns loaded!. He is in so much pain I get calls for the school, texts from him and I spend a good majority of the evening massaging his back and shoulders. He also has alot of stomach aches---anyone else???

Thanks , Chris

i was diagnosed with JRA 10 years ago, but I have had symptoms for more than 14 years. Food does effect mine, alot! I don't eat red meat, dairy or anything with refined sugar. I have a very aggressive form in all my joints though. I took plaquenil for a long time, didn't do much for me. The worst side affect is in the eyes, but if you get your eyes checked frquently you can avoid anything really bad with that. Being agressive early I hear is key. When I was diagnosed though it was a different world and being aggressive wasn't a choice for me. I would be aggressive though, give your baby as normal a life as possible. Just keep up the check ups with the doc. But plaquenil wasn't bad, its a baby drug compared to most of them! Good luck, I know it hard. It broke my mom's heart when I was diagnosed and while she has had to watch me with it. You can live though and be happy! Its not all bad. I was once told only the strongest get  it! And those who get it appreciate live to a much greater extent. Good luck! Be strong for your son, as a daughter I know we need it. And don't let him say he can't do something just because of the disease. He will regret it.I would stay away from the predisone, it isn't the that safe! Only use it when you have too.
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