Arthritis in children

debatat

Hi I wonder if you could help, my son has complained of joint pain in his shoulder and the small joints in his toes especially his big toes. The joint under the big toe nail, it gets hot swollen and very red. He suffers from a lot of unexplained fevers and rashes and fatigue. He is under a paedatrician for his asthma and chronic urticaria. I took him to the gp a few months back about his toes and shoulder and she said it was playing too much football and maybe his shoes were too small. She said that in arthritis in children the small joints in the feet are not affected. Is this true? He is complaining of a terrible aching in his toes and they are red hot and swollen. I am going to mention it at his next hospital appt but wondered if the small joints can be affected. Also the joints in his knees now make a terrible cracking noise. I do replace his shoes reguarly! :oops:

Deb

helpline_team

Hi Deb
Juvenile arthritis can affect any joint in the body and cause pain, swelling and stiffness. Do discuss this with your son's paediatrician at his next appointment and if you are not satisfied, ask your GP to refer him to a paediatric rheumatologist.
Have you seen our CHAT booklet 'A Guide for Parents'? It will give you good information and facts to help your discussion with the paediatricians. You can download it from our website or I can post it to you if you send us an email or private message with your address.
Best wishes
Val

debatat

Thank you very much for your reply. I just wanted to be sure before I approached his consultant. I will PM my address. Thanks again.

Deb