Arthritis Center

Active polyarticular juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA) can result in significant joint destruction, deformity, and lifelong loss of physical function. NSAIDs, generally effective in controlling the symptoms of the pauciarticular form of JRA, are often not adequately effective in polyarticular JRA. Although many JRA patients are treated with the same DMARDs used to treat adult-onset RA (i.e. methotrexate, sulfasalazine, etc), few controlled clinical trials of DMARDs have been conducted in JRA patients.