Juvenile idiopathic arthritis characteristics: Etiology and pathophysiology

Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is the most common chronic rheumatic condition during childhood, which may result in disabilities that can continue into adulthood. JIA, with its onset before the age of 16 years and with a chronic arthritis lasting more than 6 weeks, should present without any known cause. Despite the definition, this does not exclude a number of different etiological candidates for the pathogenesis of JIA. The advances in molecular medicine and pivotal role of cytokine network for the regulation of inflammatory processes in JIA and other chronic arthritides have greatly improved our understanding of the disease. This has contributed to the advances of clinical care of JIA with the advent of biological drugs, first and foremost anti-TNF-alpha therapies, and recently, the use of anti-IL-1 and anti-IL-6 drugs. We are still faced with a number of difficulties translating this knowledge at the molecular level into the concert of new therapeutic targets for JIA, and especially regarding the temporomandibular joint. We discuss current knowledge of the etiopathogenesis of JIA on joint destruction and its impact on the therapeutic possibilities.