Methotrexate for Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis

Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, an idiopathic inflammatory disorder, is the most common of the rheumatic diseases in children and is an important cause of disability. The diagnosis is made when a child less than 16 years of age has arthritis for at least six weeks with no other apparent cause. Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis is not a single disease but a heterogeneous group of diseases, many of which are different from adult rheumatoid arthritis. After six months of disease three major patterns can be identified. Disease of systemic onset accounts for 10 to 20 percent of cases and is defined as arthritis . . .