Health

Children's Painful Arthritis Often Misdiagnosed

CHICAGO (CBS) ― If you think the painful joint swelling of arthritis is just an "old person's" disease, think again. CBS 2's Roseanne Tellez reports experts say it strikes children too, yet is often misdiagnosed.

For 10-year-old Caitlin Ryan, a simple walk down stairs can be an uphill battle.

"It feels like a sharp rock's hitting my joints really hardly all the time when it's hurting," the arthritis sufferer said.

Her mother, Colleen Ryan, says that sharp pain has had a big impact on her daughter's life.

"She's had to sit out things, ya know. She's more of a homebody," Colleen Ryan said.

When Caitlin was just 3 years old, she was diagnosed with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis.

"She has arthritis in all of her joints -- her fingers, toes, elbows, knees, shoulders, everything," Colleen Ryan said.

A recent Centers for Disease Control study estimates that nearly 300,000 children in this country suffer from some form of arthritis.

"It's often a surprise because most people are under the impression that arthritis is mostly a disease of adults and older adults," said Dr. Norman Ilowite, M.D., of Children's Hospital at Montefiore.

Dr. Patience White with the Arthritis Foundation says pain can run the gamut from mild to debilitating.

"Swelling in a joint, limited mobility, and redness as well as heat over a joint," Dr. White said describing the range of symptoms.

Those symptoms are often dismissed as growing pains, infection or injury in children.

Caitlin's arthritis first popped up as knee pain.

"We thought it was a fall from a bike," Colleen Ryan said.

But then Caitlin spiked a fever and she landed in the ER.

There is no one test for JRA, and other conditions must be ruled out first. Caitlin's case was figured out in a few days, although JRA can take weeks, even months, to diagnose.

"Most pediatricians don't have a great deal of training in the care and diagnosis of children with chronic forms of arthritis," Dr. Ilowite said.

There is no known cure, but there are treatments including medication and exercise. Swimming and video games help Caitlin keep her joints moving.

"I really wish I could not have arthritis for the rest of my life," Caitlin said. "That would be so cool."

While juvenile arthritis can go into remission, the doctors CBS 2 spoke with say most children will carry the condition into adulthood.

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