children with arthritis

Diane - posted on 02/18/2010

I'm kind of going through the same thing with my daughter. Shes 15 yrs old but for the last 2 yrs the has lots of pain and swollen joints. Doctors are still running test on her. Its very hard to see her in so much pain and there is not to much we can do to help them. I'm just so sorry that your little girl has to go through this and such a very young age. I keep you and you daughter in my prayers. God Bless.

Kristi - posted on 02/18/2010

My Son who is 6 was diagnosed almost 2 years ago with JRA we have had our ups and downs on this one. We started with Naprosyn 2 times a day, and codiene at night to help him sleep. Then they added amatriptaline(SP) I noticed with the Naprosyn and and that he bruises so easily. So I had to give it 2 weeks on 2 weeks off because it was thining his blood. We now have to go to Salt Lake every 3 months for the JRA doctor. They took him off of everything but the codiene as needed and put him on Mobic which has worked wonders. He was having flare up after flare up and it usually was in the middle of the night where his knees would swell up and he couldn't walk. Since he has been on the mobic he has had 2 flare ups. I notice his flare up happen when it is very cold outside. But I do my best to keep him as active as ever. He even wants to play foot ball this fall. Which I am all for it. If that is what he wants I am not going to tell him no he needs to find his own limitations. But with this JRA we have to go to the eye doctor every 6 months because one of his blood test tested positive for I believe it is the A1H1 factor. So we have to watch it closely to make sure it doesn't affect his eye sight.

Tracey - posted on 01/27/2010

sharon your story sounds just like ours. emma is also on methotrexate injections however these seem to have stoped working as well recently. and she is also on ibuporhen 3x a day. emma seems to be happier and less sore and swollen in the warmer weather. and also finds playing in a bath of warm water helps on bad days.

Sharon - posted on 01/27/2010

My daughter was diagnosed at the age of 15 months but only after the Hospital we were at sent her to Childrens Hospital Boston where they diagnosed her within 5 minutes. What helped my daughter in teh beginning was Solumedrol (Steroids). My daughter now only needs to have steroids when she flares up, which she ahs only had 1 flare up in almost 3yrs!! She is now on methotrexate, Enbrel (injections) and Thalidomide. Also you can use Naprosyn (ibuprohen) 3x a day which she help w/ inflammation. Now when she is sore she rests onthe couch with her legs up or a warm bath. Although now she is most sore in the summer than in the Winter

Melanie - posted on 01/14/2010

Epsom salts in a bath are great for relieving muscles esp for people with arthritis. xx

Connie - posted on 01/12/2010

I have a 16 year old son who was born with rumatoid arthritis the only thing that i find that works with him is soaking him in a warm bath.

Karen - posted on 01/12/2010

You can make that Rice thing more permanent by sewing a rectangular Pillow type case about 12 inches long and 6 inches wide, fill it with 3 cups of un cooked rice and sew it up, it can be reused many times and you can pick her favorite color or characters for the material. Forgot to say you can also put the rice pack in the freezer as well. Better yet make two. The other thing is swelling if it is fluid based try giving her celery to reduce the inflamation, it works for me sometimes and may work for you. Also watch Salt and Pop (soda drinks) as they also cause the body to retain fluid. Happy Dancing!

Tracey - posted on 01/12/2010

thanks karen, your right swimming does help we go regulary. unfortunatly emma is on anti inflamitories 3 times a day everyday still at the moment, i want to cut them down or stop them because i dont think they work much now but the consoltant doesnt want to. the rice idea sounds good i'll give that a go to see if it helps. she also love to dance to anything so we just let her go with the flow untill she has had enough.

Karen - posted on 01/12/2010

I am 34 years old, I have three children and thankfully they did not inherit my problem. I was diagnosed at 7. I remember the rashes and still suffer with the pain daily but it is manageable. Movement is key, ICE AND heat if they can handle it. I also use plain un cooked rice in a sock that I tie up and put in the microwave for 2 minutes and place it on the sore areas. Movement is key also, being in the water always helped me. so if you can go to the swimming pool wearing a life jacket and let your child float, really also takes the pressure off. I hope some of this helps. From time to time I have to take advil but I try to stay away from other anit inflamitories and pain killers as I found the more I took the less they worked. Massage and reflexology have also helped me over the years.

Jessica - posted on 01/10/2010

My son went to the hospital with fluid in the knees and diagnosed with rh. arthritis. I immediatly went online looking for answers. It scared me half to death. He went from running and climbing on everything to not being able to stand almost instantly. The one thing I found most common was keeping the child active. It prevents the fluid build up which is what causes the pain. There is plenty of info online and great tips.