Noun | 1. | juvenile rheumatoid arthritis - a form of rheumatoid arthritis that affects children; large joints become inflamed and bone growth may be retarded atrophic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, rheumatism - a chronic autoimmune disease with inflammation of the joints and marked deformities; something (possibly a virus) triggers an attack on the synovium by the immune system, which releases cytokines that stimulate an inflammatory reaction that can lead to the destruction of all components of the joint |