Arthritis in Children and Adolescents

Arthritis in Children and Adolescents employs a unique approach to the recognition and treatment of these complex and chronic conditions. The book is divided into three sections, emphasizing the logical sequence of events that occur after the child who might have Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA) first presents to the doctor with a musculoskeletal complaint. The reader is first taught the extensive differential diagnosis of arthritis using simple but extensive algorithms and detailed discussions of each condition; more than 200 conditions are discussed. This is followed by a discussion of all types of JIA, using a revised classification system created by the International League of Associations for Rheumatology. The introduction of this new classification system has created a need for a comprehensive guide to clarify and focus attention on childhood arthritis. Lastly, the book presents an extensive discussion of treatment of childhood arthritis using a novel approach. It recognizes that childhood arthritis is treated differently depending on the stage of the illness, and must cover the entire spectrum of chronic illness from early, through established, and finally to resistant forms of childhood arthritis. Through this textbook, the reader travels the same journey as the physician who first rules out all conditions that are not chronic childhood arthritis, and then decides which type of chronic arthritis the patient has, and lastly, implements an individualised treatment plan.