It's Not Just Growing Pains: A Guide to Childhood Muscle, Bone, and Joint Pain, Rheumatic Diseases, and the Latest Treatments

by Thomas J.A. Lehman

Arthritis is usually considered a disease of older adults, but nearly 300,000 children in the United States suffer from some form of arthritis or rheumatic disease, such as juvenile arthritis (JRA), fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, systemic lupus erythematosus, scleroderma, or Kawasaki disease. Yet until now very little information has been available to guide parents and doctors in properly diagnosing such children.
Here is a readable, reliable...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0195157281
• ISBN13: 9780195157284
• Release Date: May 2004
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Length: 416 Pages
• Weight: 1.78 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.4" x 6.4" x 9.7"

Customer Reviews

The Definitive Book on Juvenile Rheumatic Diseases

Thomas J. A. Lehman MD is Chief of Pediatric Rheumatology at the Hospital for Special Surgery, in New York City and also Professor of Clinical Pediatrics at Weill Cornell Medical Center. He is considered the leading specialist in the world. As President of a charity that helps children in Russia, I have asked Dr. Lehman to volunteer his services and speak at seminars in Moscow to hundreds of rheumatoid pediatric doctors. He has done this several times over the past 5 years. He has also visited other countries as well besides allowing specialists from many other countries learn at his side. As a result of his unselfishness he has improved the lives of thousands of children throughout the world. He has written a book that every parent who has an afflicted child should read. My reason for writing this review is to assure the reader the he/she can rely on what it says, as there is no one who is more knowledgeable than the author. As can be gleaned from other reviews, the book has been written to be easily understood by the general reader.

Wonderful - must have for JRA

This is a wonderful book. Published for the first time in 2004, it is up to date with all the new medicines out there. If you have a child with Arthritis, you need this book. It addresses all issues surrounding the disease, the family, behavior, medicine, theories, how to relate to your doctor, etc.

A Godsend

This book couldn't have come at a better time. My son was recently diagnosed (and hospitalized) with stage 3, Lyme disease. He had been complaining for months about being in pain. I kept taking him to the doctor and over the course of a couple of months we were able to figure out the problem. After reading the chapter on Lyme disease, I feel very confident that he was diagnosed properly. I also read the chapters regarding other possible reasons for his pain. The symptoms don't fit and I am thankful he has a common (and treatable) disease. You must read this book if your child is in pain. IT"S NOT JUST GROWING PAINS.

a perfect guide from diagnosis to treatment to prognosis

This book was very well written, easy to understand and in depth enough for the average person. If a child you know is having undiagnosed pain this would be an excellent sourcebook. It gives you the questions to ask the specialists, tons of disease specific information, and details about why certain diagnostic tests will/will not be performed on a child. You will also better understand the possible causes and various diseases that present bone and joint pain in children. If a child you know has been diagnosed with a specific disease (as mine was), this book provides many more answers about many specific conditions than you can find online or during a single doctor visit. It also gives a realistic prognosis for a variety of diseases which many doctors are shy about giving. While this book is slightly lacking in scientific depth, it does get one started in understanding a child's condition and finding additional sources. It is geared for the parent/caregiver but would also be great for general practioners and nurses because of the information prsented regarding diagnosing bone/joint pain in children. The information regarding juvenile arthtitis is particularly up-to-date, interesting and helpful. If you are looking for a therapy guide for children's pain management this is not the book. This book thoroughly explains prescription medications, surgeries, and labs, but does not delve deeply into the theraputic realm. (I am still looking a book reagarding OT/PT therapy approaches for juvenile arthritis.)

Best I've ever read

This was a really great book. Very clearly written with good explanations and analogies to explain some stuff that other doctors I have talked to have made needlessly complicated. It really helped me understand why kids get joint pain and about my younger brothers arthritis.