The Role of Age in Delays to Rheumatological Care in Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the relationship between age and symptom duration at initial presentation to pediatric rheumatology for juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). METHODS: In children and young people (CYP) enrolled in the Childhood Arthritis Prospective Study prior to March 2018, an association between age at presentation (< 5, 5-11, and > 11 yrs) and symptom duration was tested by multivariable linear regression. RESULTS: In 1577 CYP, 5- to 11-year-olds took 3.2 months longer and > 11-year-olds 6.9 months longer to reach pediatric rheumatology than < 5-year-olds. CONCLUSION: Adolescents take longer to reach pediatric rheumatology, potentially affecting their longer-term outcomes given the window of opportunity for JIA treatment.