Children are prone to joint pain due to growth

The article is professionally consulted by Master, Doctor Truong Thanh Tam - Pediatrician - Pediatrics - Neonatology Department, Vinmec Danang International General Hospital

Growth spurts will cause pain and fatigue in the legs of a pubertal child, the pain is concentrated in the joints or knees but has no obvious location, completely normal during the day, Only at night did the pain appear. The pain process will occur for a few days and then recur...
According to statistics, about 40% of children in the process of development have growth spurts, this disease usually begins in childhood. 3 years old and sometimes until the end of puberty , most clearly between 3 and 5 years old and from 8 to 12 years old.

So far, medicine has not found a clear cause of growth spurts in children, although it is present every day in some growing children. Growth pain does not coincide with a child's period of rapid growth and it is not related to growth sites. As a result, a number of neurological and emotional disturbances are thought to be contributing factors to this pain.
In addition, there are a few causes of growth spurts in children, such as: it may be due to excessive movement in the limbs, fatigue...
Some surveys on a large number of children. According to a large population, children's growth spurt is also associated with some other recurrent pain such as abdominal pain, headache... Accordingly, about 25% of children have recurrent headaches accompanied by symptoms. growth pain. In addition, children with growth spurts also had a lower pain threshold than other children.

Growing bone pain or myalgia, growing joint pain in children has signs that are easily confused with other diseases, if parents do not have knowledge about this disease, it is easy to improperly treat their children and make the situation worse.
In fact, growing muscle pain, growing joint pain or growing bone pain are all benign pain with manifestations such as:
Leg pain or accompanied by arm pain, abdominal pain. The pain is not clear, can not find the pain location, usually in the back of the calf, the front of the thigh or the back of the knee. Growth pain often comes on suddenly, often occurs at night, so it can cause the baby to wake up crying. The child's body is still normal and unaffected. The pain comes in waves and has no specific symptoms. For children between 6 and 12 years of age can describe the pain as cramping, fatigue, numbness. When being massaged, babies feel more comfortable.

The diagnosis of growth spurts in children can be based on clinical features when the child has pain only at night and is completely normal during the day. If the child does not show any abnormality, there is no need to have an x-ray or perform other diagnostic tests.
Criteria to define a child with growth spurts include the following:
The pain often occurs at night, causing the child to wake up. Pain not related to muscles or joints. The pain occurs in continuous waves and becomes more painful if the child is active during the day. On examination, no abnormalities were found. In addition, if parents are still concerned about their child's health, a differential diagnosis can be made to rule out pain due to conditions such as:
Metabolic disorders Sickle cell disease Infections Necrosis Bone death Trauma Bone tumor or blood cancer Lack of blood supply

Growth bone pain is a common disease and is considered benign, so parents do not need to be too worried when their child has this condition. To prevent and reduce growth pain in children, parents can:
Limit children's over-activity, play games that are just enough. When the child is in pain, massage, heat, stretch to help the child more comfortable. Building a scientific and nutritionally adequate diet. For children to have regular health check-ups to screen for diseases effectively and safely. As a key area of ​​Vinmec Medical system, Pediatrics Department always brings satisfaction to customers and is highly appreciated by industry experts with:
Gathering a team of leading pediatricians: including leading experts with high professional qualifications (professors, associate professors, doctorates, masters), experienced, worked at major hospitals such as Bach Mai, 108.. Doctors All are well-trained, professional, with a mind - range, understanding young psychology. In addition to domestic pediatric specialists, the Department of Pediatrics also has the participation of foreign experts (Japan, Singapore, Australia, USA) who are always pioneers in applying the latest and most effective treatment regimens. . Comprehensive services: In the field of Pediatrics, Vinmec provides a series of continuous medical examination and treatment services from Newborn to Pediatric and Vaccine,... according to international standards to help parents take care of their baby's health from birth to childhood. from birth to adulthood Specialized techniques: Vinmec has successfully deployed many specialized techniques to make the treatment of difficult diseases in Pediatrics more effective: neurosurgery - skull surgery, stem cell transplantation. blood in cancer treatment. Professional care: In addition to understanding children's psychology, Vinmec also pays special attention to the children's play space, helping them to have fun and get used to the hospital's environment, cooperate in treatment, improve the efficiency of medical treatment.