Become a member
Quick Registration
Full Registration Benefits -
Free Homepages for Doctors
Free Homepages for Hospitals
Free Homepages for Medical Conference
Free Homepages for NGO's
Personal Health Record Creation
Access to all Medical Slides
Access to all Jobs & Products Sale
Is Obesity a Threat to Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis Patients? | |
|
| |
The current era of sedentary
lifestyle and unhealthy eating habits is increasingly posing as a major cause
of obesity amongst children. The term obesity refers to excess body fat,
unlike being overweight that could be due to several other reasons such as
increased bone weight.
Studies have shown that amongst adults, obese patients have approximately 4.5% increased risk of being affected with inflammatory arthritis than the normal population. A possible link between obesity and arthritis could be due to the presence of adipokines, which are, proteins released from the adipose tissue or ''fat tissues''. These proteins play an important role in regulating inflammatory/immune responses. Thus, in obese patients there is a possibility where excess of adipokines are released into the joint sockets and cause inflammation of joints leading to arthritis. Studies have reported that an increased level of leptin, a pro-inflammatory adipokine, is seen in Rheumatic Arthritis (RA) patients.
This particular study was primarily conducted to study the prevalence of obesity in patients with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA) and to observe if there was an association between obesity and disease activity. The study was based on a database from JIA patients attending a single pediatric rheumatology clinic in Boston from October 2009 to September 2010. The disease activity of these patients were calculated based on the Juvenile Arthritis Disease Activity Score (JADAS 27) which included four main measures: physician global assessment of disease activity, parent global assessment of child's well-being, count of joints with active disease (evaluating 27 joints), and ESR which tests the inflammation rate in the body. The children were classified as obese, overweight, normal or underweight based on their body mass index (BMI). The medication undertaken and duration of use by the patients were also noted.
Several statistical analysis methods were done to understand the association between the disease activity score (JADAS 27), obesity level and the ESR/degree of inflammation. The results showed that 18% of the patients from the study with JIA were obese, however, an exact association between obesity and the disease activity was not established. The rate of children who were obese with JIA was nearly identical to otherwise healthy children. Although earlier studies have indicated an association between obesity and worsened disease activity in RA patients, this was not observed in this particular study. Other studies have also indicated that, inflammation or increased disease activity in obese children could be due to physical inactivity and not exactly due to being affected by arthritis.
Although there were several limitations to this study such as small sample size, lack of physical activity, socioeconomic status of patients, etc., it can be regarded as one of the first studies to explore a relationship between obesity and disease activity.
To conclude, an association between obesity and disease activity in children affected with JIA was not established from this study. However, as the risk of obesity is higher in children with JIA, it is important for medical practitioners to discuss this issue with parents having children with JIA.
Reference:
Obesity and disease activity in juvenile idiopathic arthritis; Christina Pelajo et al; Pediatric Rheumatology, 2012.
Source-Medindia
| |
|
|
More News on: Bariatric Surgery, Obesity, Osteoarthritis, Diabetes - Essentials, Binge Eating : The Pleasure and Pain, Bulimia Nervosa, Oligoarthritis, Ideal Body Weight-Adults, Physiotherapy Utilities, Spondylolisthesis
 Comment & Contribute
|
Related Links
Body Mass Index
Body mass index (BMI) is a simple tool that is generally used to estimate the total amount of body fat. ...
Tips to Control Obesity in Children
Obesity is resistant to instant remedies and its management is a long-term endeavor. Here are a few tips to control obesity in ...
Health Watch News
How Much Vitamin D is Needed for Infants?
We all know very well that vitamin D or 'the sunshine vitamin' is required for the growth and development of healthy bones. In the initial ...
You Will Invite Hatred by Fat Talk
You might be conscious about being overweight but make a point to avoid talking about your obesity with others, as nobody likes it or is interested ...
Dual Parenting More Beneficial Than Single Parenting, Shows Brain Research
Canadian research suggests that dual parenting may be more beneficial than single parenting. It may offer the advantage of enhancing brain cell ...
Status of Elderly In-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Survivors
It is now well known that cardiac arrest survivors suffer severe emotional and mental stress. The survivors also experience some degree of ...
Outdoor Activity Reduces Chances of Developing Nearsightedness in Kids
Two new studies published in the journal Ophthalmology reveal that spending time outdoors may help prevent or minimize nearsightedness ...
Bone Health in Children Requires Magnesium Along With Calcium
Whenever parents think of bone health of their child, the first thing that comes to their mind is calcium. It looks like magnesium too has an ...
- Health News Index
 | Quiz on Arthritis Arthritis, the inflammation of joints, can affect anyone irrespective of their age, gender, or genes. However, a healthy lifestyle can prevent the development of arthritis. 
|
- News Quick Links
 | News Central | | Health Watch | |
| Latest Health News | | Health In Focus | |
| News Category (500+) | | Breaking Health News | |
| Popular News | | Celebrating Life | |
| Health News and Press Release | | Medindia - Exclusive | |
| News Photo Gallery | | India Special | |
| News Video Gallery | | Lifestyle and Wellness | |
| News From Other Resources | |||
 |
Obesity
Complete Medindia Resources
|
| News Categories: |
| » | Health Benefits of Dark Chocolate Revealed |
| » | Meat Grown from Animal Cells in the Laboratory |
| » | Study Shows Why Ripe Strawberries Smell So Distinctive |
| » | Fish Oil may Reduce Effects of Junk Food on Brain |
| » | Consuming Small Breakfast Conducive to Weight Loss |
| More Diet News | |
|
Ask an Expert
