Think about waking up in the future and out of the blue being unable to make use of your legs. That was what occurred to Rain Shiu Tin-yung in Hong Kong when he was six.
“He received up that morning, however his knees harm a lot that he couldn’t stroll. He was in a lot ache,” Shiu’s mom, Apple Kwok Siu-ping, recalled.
The ache solely worsened.
“All his joints have been infected. It was so painful he would get up crying,” Kwok stated. “He went from with the ability to stroll to not strolling in any respect.”
It took a number of visits to the medical doctors and exams earlier than Shiu, now 20, was identified with paediatric rheumatism, a broad time period for greater than 100 autoimmune problems in kids, the place the physique’s immune system mistakenly assaults wholesome tissues, inflicting irritation and continual ache in joints, muscular tissues and different areas. On the time, consciousness about this uncommon group of ailments amongst medical doctors was nonetheless low.
In 2005, rheumatology specialist Dr Lee Tze-leung led a gaggle of sufferers, members of the family and different professionals to ascertain the Hong Kong Paediatric Rheumatism Affiliation (HKPRA), a non-profit devoted to elevating consciousness and offering mutual help for youngsters with rheumatic ailments and their carers.