One of the most common and most misunderstood issues that parents worry about during childhood is leg pain. The overwhelming majority of the pains that occur in children between the ages of 3-12 when the day's activity decreases (waking up in the evening, before sleep or in the middle of the night) and are demonstrated by crying are innocently called "Growing Pains". However, some warning signs may be a sign of other serious pediatric or rheumatic diseases.
WHAT ARE INNOCENT GROWTH PAINS LIKE?
- Growing pains are deep, cramp-like pains felt in the muscles of both legs (usually in the calves, behind the knees or in the femur area). - Not just in the joints, but in larger muscle areas. - It is severe at night, it can be felt sharp enough for the child to wake up crying, but when the child wakes up in the morning, the pain disappears completely and the child starts to run and play cheerfully throughout the day. - If your child feels relief when you apply a light massage to the painful area, or if the reaction is relieved quickly with a light warming/pain relieving cream, it is most likely a growing pain.
ALARM BELLS: HOW TO RECOGNIZE RHEUMATIC AND OTHER DISEASES?
You should definitely not keep the child waiting at home saying "This is just a growing pain" in the following cases:
1. If the pain is always in one area: Growing pain usually affects both legs; If the pain is constantly in a single joint or in a specific area on one leg, the possibility of trauma or tumor should be considered. 2. It gets worse in the morning: Growth pain does not occur when you wake up in the morning, but if the child has difficulty opening his joints when he wakes up in the morning, has morning stiffness or walks with a limp, this may indicate childhood rheumatic problems (Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis, etc.). 3. Presence of physical symptoms: Swelling, redness, pain when touching a particular joint (a swelling with increased temperature) are never seen in growing pain. It is a sign of bone/joint infections or juvenile arthritis. 4. Other Symptoms Added to Pain: If there are night sweats, unexpected and unknown fever increases, excessive muscle or weight loss, the situation is urgent, full blood tests and pediatric examinations must be performed by a pediatrician.
In short, if your child wakes up at night and cries, your love and massage of his legs work, and he starts the morning running to play in the park with a smile, there is nothing to fear. However, if your child's complaints fall within the "red flag" limits above, we need to quickly find the root cause of the disease by performing a detailed examination in our specialist clinic.