'I didn't know kids could get arthritis until my daughter was diagnosed'

Watching a child take their first steps is a special moment for new mums and dads, but when one-year-old Ella's parents spotted she was dragging one foot behind the other the explanation they received was something completely unexpected.

Looking back at a video of her daughter as she shuffled along at a family party, Samantha recalls the moment she realised something was not quite right.

"I had a look at her ankle," she says. "It couldn't move sideways, up or down. Children's bones are quite soft. We wondered if she had broken it and it hadn't set correctly."

But soon her knee was swelling and the walk became a limp.

A family friend was the first to mention arthritis, though Samantha, from Kippax, near Leeds, said she struggled to comprehend the thought at first.

"I'd never heard children could get it - to me arthritis was wear and tear when you're old," she sayd.

But, after learning more about the condition, she said by the time they saw an NHS physio "we were able to say, 'we think it's this and this is what we want to do'."

Ella was treated promptly with steroid injections - two in her ankle and one in her knee.

"Because the knee was a recent thing, it didn't take too long to get back to normal," says Samantha. "The ankle took longer with physio."

Three years later, Ella is very active.

"She's doing fantastic," says Samantha. "She's not on any medication, her left foot is a full shoe size smaller but that can catch up."

Samantha continues: "She will need to have medical appointments every four months for a few more years as one complication can be uveitis, [an inflammation of the eyes] which can't be detected.

"It's an autoimmune disease. It's not wear and tear, it's your body getting confused and attacking healthy joints."

Arthritis is commonly thought to affect only older people, but about 16,000 children in the UK have the condition, which can cause lifelong joint damage and even blindness if not diagnosed early.

"There is no cure but it is treatable," says Richard Beesley, founder of the charity Juvenile Arthritis Research.

"Medications and treatments have progressed hugely in the last 15 to 20 years but it does require a clinician who can make that diagnosis.

"It comes as a complete shock to families. They feel alone and scared, they're told it's a chronic autoimmune condition and they don't know where to go. That's where we come in to provide support."

He adds: "We want a world where no child has to suffer with arthritis. We're supporting researchers and health care professionals to improve treatment options for children and young people affected by juvenile idiopathic arthritis."

Now aged four, Ella's journey has inspired her family to raise money and spread the message about he condition.

As part of her fundraising efforts for the charity, Samantha is running a marathon a month.

"It's about being aware. Sometimes children might complain of aches and pains," she says. "It could be growing pains or it could be something else. It affects every child differently.

"Some children are on lifelong medication as soon as they get the diagnosis, some grow out of it. Some children don't get the diagnosis and get permanent damage."

She concludes: "We make sure Ella is as active as possible because that's what she needs for her joints."

Ella has her own reason for chasing her older brother around the garden.

"It's because I love him," she says.

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