We walk for our daughter
It all started when our first daughter, Avery, turned two years old. We noticed that she was limping on her right ankle, especially in the morning. Upon further inspection, her shoes were also not fitting the same due to swelling in her foot. Initially we attributed it to increased activity at her age, but when it persisted we took her to our pediatrician who referred her to an orthopedic specialist at Children’s Hospital (CHP). After his exam, he said that she had “unilateral flatfoot” which only comes from inflammation in the joint. He ordered blood work. At this point, we knew that he was looking for a bigger problem, not just a common joint injury. While waiting for the results, we also noticed that her left knee was stiff.
Eventually we were referred to a pediatric rheumatologist at Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh – UPMC (CHP), who diagnosed her with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. She has had inflammation in many of her joints including her ankle, knee, toes, wrist and fingers and also in her eye. Of all things that we worried about our child getting, arthritis never crossed our minds. It is an adult disease that affects the aging population, right? We soon learned that this was not the case. It was reality for our two-year-old. Her diagnosis made us feel sad and overwhelmed. She will have to live with the debilitating pain of arthritis for most of her life.
After initially grieving, our family decided to take a proactive approach to Avery’s situation. The spring after her diagnosis we were asked to participate in the Arthritis Foundation’s Spring Walk. We thought that this would be a great way to take a positive outlook for her future by increasing awareness of the disease and raising money for The Arthritis Foundation. Over the past four years, our team has raised over $8,000 for arthritis research, education and programming.
Since her diagnosis, Avery has had many different treatment interventions. She had physical therapy, injected and oral medications and steroid joint injections. When we visit CHP for her check-ups, we are reminded of how lucky we are to have medications to help her. Many families would love to have something to help their sick child. Thanks to the research that has been done, there are many more effective options to treat arthritis today. The medication that Avery is currently taking is relatively new. It has only been available to treat JRA in the past decade. One of her doctors described his waiting room, prior to the introduction of these medications, as being filled with wheelchairs, walkers and crutches. Because of biologic medications, Avery is able to enjoy swimming, gymnastics, riding her bike and playing with her friends. We are so thankful for these improved treatments and we are hoping for a cure in Avery’s lifetime…this is why our family “walks”.
This year we are very proud that Avery has been chosen as one of four honorees at the Pittsburgh Arthritis Walk on June 1st at the Southside Works. She is a perfect example of a child that thrives despite her arthritis. We hope that our story inspires others to walk and join our mission. Please join our team “Avery’s Angels” or make a donation to support us at arthritiswalkpittsburgh.kintera.org.
-Brian Polinsky, Avery's father
