Juvenile arthritis may be missed by doctors

According to the Arthritis Foundation, juvenile arthritis (JA) is still largely unknown to the public and is often misdiagnosed by primary care doctors. Although JA is one of the most common chronic childhood diseases, its early symptoms—joint pain, stiffness, and swelling—may be mistaken for “growing pains.” That’s a serious problem, because delayed diagnosis can lead to irreversible joint damage and a missed opportunity to prevent lifelong disability. Another challenge facing families dealing with JA is the dwindling number of specialists. Although nearly 300,000 children have some form of JA, the number of pediatric rheumatologists hovers around 200 nationwide. That means many families must travel long distances for treatment—which is both expensive and time-consuming.