Juvenile idiopathic arthritis in the lumbosacral spine of a toddler: Periarticular osteopenia in a rare location

Abstract

Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is a group of childhood inflammatory arthropathies that affects multiple joints including the spine, particularly the cervical region. There is paucity of literature regarding JIA in the lumbosacral spine; the few published studies which discuss imaging findings in the lumbosacral spine only include cohorts of older children and adolescents. We present a 22-month-old boy with refusal to walk, in which plain radiographs and contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging of the lumbosacral spine suggested a diagnosis of JIA.

Isolated Facet Joint Arthritis in Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis

“…The majority of JIA cases that affect the spine are located in the cervical region such as synovitis, atlantoaxial subluxation, or ankylosis [ 4 ]. Less commonly, ankyloses have been reported of JIA affecting the lumbosacral spine [ 5 ], which occurs more predominantly in adolescents [ 6 ]. Ankylosis that affects the lumbar and sacral spine is seen in enthesitis-related JIA which affects about 10 to 20% of children with JIA [ 7 ].…”