-PEDIATRIC-
PREMIUM THESIS TOPICS

Q: How do I choose a feasible paediatric rheumatology thesis topic?

Start from the register rather than the literature. Count how many children with the disease attended your unit in the last two or three years and assume the coming year will be similar. Juvenile idiopathic arthritis and immunoglobulin A vasculitis usually provide enough children for a prospective study, while juvenile dermatomyositis, systemic sclerosis and the periodic fever syndromes may present only three or four times a year. Then confirm that every variable in the proforma already exists in routine care, and allow for the months consumed by ethics approval, registration and pilot testing before recruitment can begin.

Q: Which study designs are accepted for a paediatric rheumatology thesis?

Cross-sectional observational studies suit clinical and demographic profiles, the frequency of a manifestation and instrument comparisons at a single visit. Prospective observational cohorts suit disease activity over time and time to inactive disease. Retrospective record-based studies are accepted and are often the only workable design for rare disorders. Diagnostic accuracy and agreement studies are accepted where a defensible reference standard exists, and where none exists the study must be described as an agreement study. Interventional designs are rarely approved at thesis level because the disorders are chronic, the drugs are toxic and the samples are small.

Q: What should I settle with my guide before writing the protocol?

Agree the criteria set and version for every disease and whether it is applied prospectively or re-applied to old records; the primary outcome as one measurable variable with its instrument and timing; who performs the joint count and whether a second examiner will assess a subset for agreement; the activity index variant, the acute-phase reactant and its laboratory method, and the language of the global scales; the route to the slit lamp agreed with ophthalmology in advance; access to prescription and pharmacy records for drug exposure; and the sample size with its assumptions, fixed before registration.

Q: What can I do if the disorder I want to study is rare at my centre?

Widen the time window rather than the case definition, since a retrospective series over five to ten years will accumulate enough children with juvenile dermatomyositis, localised scleroderma or an autoinflammatory syndrome. Apply one named criteria set across the whole period and report children whose records lack a required item as unclassifiable rather than as not having the disease. A carefully characterised descriptive case series is a legitimate thesis. Alternatively keep the rare question but use a common population, such as screening a large juvenile idiopathic arthritis cohort for a specific complication. Multicentre extension requires the second centre's ethics clearance and a named local investigator before collection begins.

Q: What ethics committee issues apply to paediatric rheumatology research?

Written consent is taken from a parent or guardian and written assent from the child from about seven years, with the child's refusal respected. Retrospective record-based work may apply for a waiver of consent provided data are anonymised at extraction and no family is contacted. No radiation, computed tomography, densitometry or contrast is performed for research alone. Any additional blood sample is drawn with a clinically indicated one within a stated volume ceiling per kilogram. Photographs and video of rashes, nail fold changes, contractures and gait require separate consent because facial and cutaneous images identify the child. The protocol must name a pathway for the incidental findings this subject produces, including asymptomatic anterior uveitis found on a study slit lamp examination, proteinuria or raised blood pressure, transaminitis or cytopenia on monitoring bloods, latent or indeterminate tuberculosis screening before biologic therapy, and an isolated positive antinuclear antibody, which is never communicated to a family as a diagnosis.

Q: Why do my inactive disease and activity score results look better than the clinic feels?

Because part of the score measures the drug. The JADAS family includes a normalised acute-phase reactant, and in a child on an interleukin 6 pathway blocker the ESR and C-reactive protein are suppressed pharmacologically, so that component reads near zero whatever the joints are doing. Systemic steroids act similarly. The clinical JADAS omits the laboratory item entirely and carries its own cut-offs, so the two variants cannot be pooled and a cut-off from one cannot be applied to the other. Inactive disease is a state at a single visit, whereas clinical remission on and off medication require continuous inactivity over defined months, so a cross-sectional study can report inactive disease with the drug exposure stated alongside it but cannot report a remission rate.

Q: How is a PhD research proposal different from an MD or DNB synopsis?

A doctoral proposal argues a gap rather than describing a plan. It carries a full critical review of the literature, an explicit theoretical or mechanistic framework, several linked studies or phases, a feasibility and timeline section covering three or more years, a data management and sharing plan, a funding statement and often preliminary data. An MD or DNB synopsis addresses one question with one design inside a single thesis period and is judged on feasibility and correctness of method. Doctoral work in paediatric rheumatology usually also requires multicentre recruitment or a laboratory component, neither of which a residency thesis can carry.

Q: When should I register my thesis topic and start data collection?

Registration deadlines are set by the university or board and usually fall within the first year of the course, so the topic should be settled and the protocol drafted well before that date. Work backwards from the deadline to allow for the guide's revisions, for an institutional ethics committee that may meet only every second or third month, and for queries it raises. Data collection begins only after approval is in hand, and prospective data collected before approval cannot be used. The recruitment window must close with enough months left for analysis, writing, plagiarism checking and binding; if it does not, a retrospective design is safer.

Pediatric Rheumatology Thesis Topics

This page lists paediatric rheumatology thesis topics for MD and DNB Paediatrics residents and for DrNB and fellowship trainees in paediatric rheumatology, grouped by disease so that a broad interest can be narrowed to a defined question in one sitting. The list runs from juvenile idiopathic arthritis, childhood lupus, juvenile dermatomyositis and the childhood vasculitides through autoinflammatory and periodic fever syndromes, scleroderma and mixed connective tissue disease, non-inflammatory musculoskeletal pain and hypermobility, uveitis and multisystem manifestations, drug safety and laboratory monitoring, and functional and psychosocial outcomes, so that juvenile idiopathic arthritis research topics and the rarer connective tissue questions sit side by side and can be compared for feasibility. Every design here is completable within a single thesis period using children already attending a paediatric or paediatric rheumatology clinic and the investigations already ordered for their care — joint examination, ESR and CRP, ANA, routine haematology and biochemistry, urine examination, the slit lamp already available in the eye department, and the medication records the clinic already keeps. A structured paediatric rheumatology protocol or paediatric rheumatology synopsis can be prepared for any topic on this page, with the classification criteria, the joint count definition, the activity index variant and the sample size calculation written out in the form an institutional ethics committee and a university expects.

Last reviewed and updated: August 2026

📌 Updated for 2026–2027 MD, DNB Paediatrics and paediatric rheumatology fellowship admissions

Each topic was reviewed against what a single tertiary paediatric unit can actually deliver in one thesis period, and against the classification and outcome definitions a university examiner will expect to see named.

Most designs need only clinical joint examination, ESR or CRP, ANA, routine biochemistry and urine examination, a slit lamp in the ophthalmology department, and the prescription record. Where imaging appears, it is imaging already performed for the child's care.
No topic on this list requires myositis-specific antibody panels, gene panels for autoinflammatory disease, capillaroscopy or research-funded MRI. Where such a test is central to a question, the topic has been framed around the children in whom it was already done, and the resulting selection is stated as a limitation rather than hidden.
Publication potential sits mainly with examiner agreement studies on the active joint count, audits of uveitis screening and methotrexate monitoring compliance, drug survival and intolerance work drawn from pharmacy records, and functional status and transition readiness studies that need only a validated questionnaire.

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Introduction / Synopsis
Research Question
Aim of the Study
Primary Objective
Secondary Objectives
Materials and Methods
Inclusion Criteria
Exclusion Criteria
Sample Size Calculation
Methodology
Statistical Analysis
Ethical Considerations
Review of Literature
References
Gantt Chart / Study Timeline
Patient Information Sheet
Consent Form
Data Collection Form

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Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis

Clinical and Demographic Profile of Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis among Children Attending a Tertiary Care Hospital: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Distribution of Clinical Subtypes of Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis among Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Comparative Evaluation of Clinical Characteristics among Oligoarticular, Polyarticular and Systemic Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Age at Disease Onset with Clinical Subtype of Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Pattern of Joint Involvement among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Small-Joint and Large-Joint Involvement among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Disease Duration with Number of Active Joints among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Clinical Profile of Oligoarticular Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Clinical Profile of Polyarticular Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Rheumatoid Factor Positive and Rheumatoid Factor Negative Polyarticular Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical and Laboratory Profile of Systemic Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Serum Ferritin Levels with Clinical Activity among Children with Systemic Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Inflammatory Markers among Different Subtypes of Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Erythrocyte Sedimentation Rate with Number of Active Joints among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Association of C-Reactive Protein Levels with Clinical Disease Activity among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Prevalence of Anaemia among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Haemoglobin Levels with Disease Activity among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Nutritional Status among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Disease Activity with Growth Parameters among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Nutritional Status in Children with Active and Inactive Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Prevalence and Pattern of Growth Retardation among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Functional Disability among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Number of Affected Joints with Functional Disability among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Functional Status among Different Clinical Subtypes of Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Health-Related Quality of Life among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Disease Activity with Quality of Life among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
School Attendance and Academic Difficulties among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Functional Disability with School Absenteeism among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Caregiver Burden among Families of Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical, Laboratory, Functional and Psychosocial Profile of Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study

Systemic Lupus Erythematosus in Children

Clinical and Immunological Profile of Paediatric Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Spectrum of Presenting Manifestations among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Age at Disease Onset with Clinical Manifestations of Paediatric Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Pattern of Musculoskeletal Manifestations among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Prevalence and Pattern of Mucocutaneous Manifestations among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Study
Comparative Evaluation of Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus with and without Mucocutaneous Involvement: A Cross-Sectional Study
Haematological Abnormalities among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Prevalence and Pattern of Anaemia among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Haemoglobin Levels with Disease Activity among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Prevalence of Leukopenia and Lymphopenia among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Lymphocyte Count with Disease Activity among Children with Paediatric Lupus: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Thrombocytopenia among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus and Its Association with Disease Activity: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Complement Profile among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Complement Levels with Clinical Disease Activity in Paediatric Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Anti-Double-Stranded Deoxyribonucleic Acid Antibody Levels and Their Association with Disease Activity in Paediatric Lupus: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Immunological Profiles among Children with Active and Inactive Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Study
Renal Manifestations among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Prevalence of Proteinuria and Haematuria among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Proteinuria with Complement Levels among Children with Lupus Nephritis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Clinical and Laboratory Profile of Lupus Nephritis among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus with and without Renal Involvement: A Cross-Sectional Study
Neurological Manifestations among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Cardiovascular Manifestations among Children with Paediatric Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Pulmonary Manifestations among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Nutritional Status among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Glucocorticoid Exposure with Body Mass Index among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Vitamin D Status among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Vitamin D Levels with Disease Activity among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Health-Related Quality of Life among Children and Adolescents with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical, Immunological and Organ-System Profile of Paediatric Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study

Juvenile Dermatomyositis and Inflammatory Myopathies

Clinical and Laboratory Profile of Juvenile Dermatomyositis among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Spectrum of Muscular and Cutaneous Manifestations among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Muscle Weakness Severity with Serum Creatine Kinase Levels among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis with Normal and Elevated Creatine Kinase Levels: A Cross-Sectional Study
Pattern of Cutaneous Manifestations among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Cutaneous Disease Severity with Muscle Weakness among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Prevalence of Gottron Papules and Heliotrope Rash among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Nailfold Capillary Abnormalities among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Nailfold Capillary Abnormalities with Disease Activity among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Nailfold Capillaroscopy Findings in Juvenile Dermatomyositis and Healthy Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Muscle Enzyme Profile among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Creatine Kinase, Lactate Dehydrogenase and Transaminase Levels in Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Lactate Dehydrogenase Levels with Muscle Weakness among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Electromyographic Abnormalities among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Clinical and Electromyographic Findings among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Magnetic Resonance Imaging Findings of Skeletal Muscles among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Magnetic Resonance Imaging Muscle Abnormalities with Clinical Weakness in Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Prevalence and Pattern of Calcinosis among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Calcinosis with Disease Duration among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Gastrointestinal Manifestations among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Pulmonary Function Profile among Children and Adolescents with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Pulmonary Function in Juvenile Dermatomyositis and Healthy Controls: A Cross-Sectional Study
Nutritional Status among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Muscle Weakness with Nutritional Status among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Functional Status among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Muscle Strength with Functional Disability among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Health-Related Quality of Life among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Comparative Evaluation of Quality of Life among Children with Juvenile Dermatomyositis and Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical and Laboratory Profile of Other Idiopathic Inflammatory Myopathies among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Clinical, Biochemical, Imaging and Functional Profile of Juvenile Inflammatory Myopathies: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study

Childhood Vasculitis and Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis

Clinical Profile of Childhood Vasculitis among Children Attending a Tertiary Care Hospital: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Distribution of Different Types of Primary Vasculitis among Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical and Laboratory Profile of Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Pattern of Skin Manifestations among Children with Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Prevalence of Joint Involvement among Children with Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Joint Involvement with Age among Children with Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Gastrointestinal Manifestations among Children with Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Gastrointestinal Symptoms with Inflammatory Markers among Children with Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Renal Manifestations among Children with Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Prevalence of Haematuria and Proteinuria among Children with Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Proteinuria with Clinical Severity among Children with Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Children with Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis with and without Renal Involvement: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Gastrointestinal Involvement with Renal Abnormalities among Children with Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Platelet Indices among Children with Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Neutrophil-to-Lymphocyte Ratio with Organ Involvement in Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Association of Platelet-to-Lymphocyte Ratio with Gastrointestinal Involvement in Childhood Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Clinical and Laboratory Profile of Kawasaki Disease among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Complete and Incomplete Kawasaki Disease among Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Inflammatory Markers with Coronary Artery Abnormalities among Children with Kawasaki Disease: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Echocardiographic Profile of Children with Kawasaki Disease: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Prevalence and Pattern of Coronary Artery Abnormalities among Children with Kawasaki Disease: A Cross-Sectional Study
Comparative Evaluation of Children with Kawasaki Disease with and without Coronary Artery Involvement: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical Profile of Polyarteritis Nodosa among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Cutaneous and Systemic Manifestations among Children with Polyarteritis Nodosa: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical Profile of Takayasu Arteritis among Children and Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Blood Pressure and Pulse Abnormalities among Children with Takayasu Arteritis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Imaging Profile of Large-Vessel Involvement among Children with Takayasu Arteritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Comparative Evaluation of Small-, Medium- and Large-Vessel Vasculitis among Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Quality of Life among Children with Chronic Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical, Laboratory and Organ-System Spectrum of Childhood Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study

Autoinflammatory Disorders and Periodic Fever Syndromes

Clinical Profile of Recurrent Fever Syndromes among Children Referred to Paediatric Rheumatology: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Aetiological Spectrum of Recurrent Unexplained Fever among Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical Characteristics of Children with Periodic Fever Syndromes: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Periodic Fever Syndromes and Recurrent Infectious Fever among Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical Profile of Periodic Fever, Aphthous Stomatitis, Pharyngitis and Cervical Adenitis Syndrome among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Age with Clinical Manifestations of Periodic Fever, Aphthous Stomatitis, Pharyngitis and Cervical Adenitis Syndrome: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Children with Periodic Fever Syndrome with and without Aphthous Ulcers: A Cross-Sectional Study
Haematological and Inflammatory Marker Profile among Children with Periodic Fever Syndromes: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of C-Reactive Protein with Symptom Burden among Children with Autoinflammatory Disorders: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Serum Ferritin Profile among Children with Autoinflammatory Disorders: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Inflammatory Markers among Autoinflammatory and Autoimmune Rheumatic Diseases in Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical Profile of Familial Mediterranean Fever among Children Presenting to a Tertiary Care Centre: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Pattern of Abdominal and Joint Manifestations among Children with Familial Mediterranean Fever: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Family History with Clinical Phenotype of Familial Mediterranean Fever among Children: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Clinical Characteristics of Tumour Necrosis Factor Receptor-Associated Periodic Syndrome among Suspected Paediatric Cases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Clinical Profile of Cryopyrin-Associated Periodic Syndromes among Children Presenting to a Paediatric Rheumatology Centre: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Clinical and Laboratory Profile of Hyperimmunoglobulinemia D Syndrome among Suspected Paediatric Cases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Different Hereditary Periodic Fever Syndromes among Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Musculoskeletal Manifestations among Children with Autoinflammatory Disorders: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Skin Manifestations among Children with Autoinflammatory Syndromes: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Skin Manifestations with Inflammatory Marker Levels among Children with Autoinflammatory Disorders: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Prevalence of Growth Retardation among Children with Chronic Autoinflammatory Disorders: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Disease Burden with Nutritional Status among Children with Autoinflammatory Disorders: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Clinical Profile of Children with Recurrent Oral Ulcers Referred for Rheumatological Evaluation: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Recurrent Aphthous Ulceration in Children with and without Systemic Rheumatic Disease: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical Profile of Paediatric Behçet Disease: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Pattern of Mucocutaneous, Ocular and Musculoskeletal Manifestations in Paediatric Behçet Disease: A Cross-Sectional Study
Quality of Life among Children with Recurrent Autoinflammatory Disorders: A Cross-Sectional Study
Caregiver Burden among Families of Children with Periodic Fever Syndromes: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Clinical, Laboratory and Functional Spectrum of Paediatric Autoinflammatory Disorders: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study

Scleroderma, Mixed Connective Tissue Disease and Other Connective Tissue Disorders

Clinical Profile of Juvenile Systemic Sclerosis among Children and Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Pattern of Cutaneous Manifestations among Children with Juvenile Systemic Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Skin Thickening Severity with Internal Organ Involvement among Children with Juvenile Systemic Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Raynaud Phenomenon among Children with Juvenile Systemic Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Nailfold Capillaroscopy Findings among Children with Juvenile Systemic Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Nailfold Capillaroscopic Abnormalities with Digital Changes in Juvenile Systemic Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Nailfold Capillaroscopy Findings in Juvenile Systemic Sclerosis and Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Pulmonary Function Abnormalities among Children with Juvenile Systemic Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Skin Disease Severity with Pulmonary Function among Children with Juvenile Systemic Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Echocardiographic Profile of Children with Juvenile Systemic Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Gastrointestinal Manifestations among Children with Juvenile Systemic Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Musculoskeletal Manifestations among Children with Juvenile Systemic Sclerosis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Clinical Profile of Localised Scleroderma among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Distribution of Morphological Types of Localised Scleroderma among Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Comparative Evaluation of Linear and Plaque Morphea among Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Functional Impairment among Children with Linear Scleroderma involving the Limbs: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical and Immunological Profile of Mixed Connective Tissue Disease among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Mixed Connective Tissue Disease and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus among Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Pattern of Musculoskeletal Manifestations in Paediatric Mixed Connective Tissue Disease: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Pulmonary Manifestations among Children with Mixed Connective Tissue Disease: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Raynaud Phenomenon among Children with Mixed Connective Tissue Disease: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical Profile of Undifferentiated Connective Tissue Disease among Children and Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Undifferentiated and Defined Connective Tissue Diseases among Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Autoantibody Profile among Children with Connective Tissue Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Antinuclear Antibody Patterns with Clinical Phenotype among Children with Connective Tissue Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Antinuclear Antibody Patterns across Major Paediatric Connective Tissue Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
Nutritional Status among Children with Chronic Connective Tissue Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Growth Abnormalities among Children with Connective Tissue Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
Health-Related Quality of Life among Children with Connective Tissue Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical, Immunological and Functional Spectrum of Paediatric Connective Tissue Disorders: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study

Paediatric Musculoskeletal Pain, Hypermobility and Non-Inflammatory Disorders

Clinical Profile of Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain among Children and Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Distribution of Causes of Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain among Children Referred to Paediatric Rheumatology: A Cross-Sectional Study
Comparative Evaluation of Inflammatory and Non-Inflammatory Musculoskeletal Pain among Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical Characteristics of Growing Pains among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Growing Pains with Vitamin D Levels among Children: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Vitamin D Status in Children with Growing Pains and Healthy Controls: A Cross-Sectional Study
Prevalence of Joint Hypermobility among School-Aged Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Generalised Joint Hypermobility with Musculoskeletal Pain among Children: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Musculoskeletal Symptoms among Children with and without Generalised Joint Hypermobility: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical Profile of Hypermobility Spectrum Disorders among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Joint Hypermobility with Physical Activity among School-Aged Children: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Association of Body Mass Index with Generalised Joint Hypermobility among Children: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Prevalence of Flat Foot among Children with Generalised Joint Hypermobility: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Foot Posture with Lower-Limb Pain among Children with Joint Hypermobility: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Clinical Profile of Benign Limb Pain among School-Aged Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Screen Time and Physical Inactivity with Musculoskeletal Pain among Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Prevalence of Back Pain among School-Going Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Schoolbag Weight with Back Pain among School-Aged Children: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Musculoskeletal Pain among Adolescents with High and Low Physical Activity: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Body Mass Index with Knee Pain among Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Prevalence of Amplified Musculoskeletal Pain among Children attending a Rheumatology Clinic: A Cross-Sectional Study
Clinical and Psychosocial Profile of Children with Amplified Musculoskeletal Pain: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Anxiety Symptoms with Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain among Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Association of Sleep Quality with Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain among Children: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Sleep Quality among Children with Chronic Pain and Healthy Controls: A Cross-Sectional Study
Functional Disability among Children with Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Pain Severity with Functional Disability among Children: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Health-Related Quality of Life among Children with Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of School Absenteeism with Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain among Children: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Clinical, Functional and Psychosocial Profile of Non-Inflammatory Musculoskeletal Disorders among Children: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study

Paediatric Uveitis, Ocular and Multisystem Rheumatic Manifestations

Prevalence and Pattern of Uveitis among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Comparative Evaluation of Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis with and without Uveitis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis Subtype with Uveitis among Children: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Association of Antinuclear Antibody Positivity with Uveitis among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Ocular Manifestations among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Ocular Manifestations across Paediatric Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
Prevalence of Dry-Eye Symptoms among Adolescents with Connective Tissue Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Disease Activity with Ocular Symptoms among Children with Connective Tissue Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Cardiac Manifestations among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Echocardiographic Abnormalities among Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus and Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Pulmonary Manifestations among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Pulmonary Function Abnormalities among Children with Connective Tissue Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
Comparative Evaluation of Pulmonary Function among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus and Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Renal Abnormalities among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Urinary Abnormalities among Systemic Lupus Erythematosus and Immunoglobulin A Vasculitis in Children: A Cross-Sectional Study
Neurological Manifestations among Children with Autoimmune Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Neurological Manifestations among Paediatric Lupus and Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Gastrointestinal Manifestations among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Gastrointestinal Symptoms with Disease Activity among Children with Systemic Rheumatic Disease: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Haematological Abnormalities across Major Paediatric Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Anaemia among Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus and Vasculitis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Thrombocytopenia with Organ Involvement among Children with Systemic Rheumatic Disease: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Liver Function Abnormalities among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Transaminase Elevation with Medication Exposure among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Growth and Pubertal Status among Children with Chronic Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Growth Parameters among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Glucocorticoid Exposure with Growth Parameters among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Vitamin D Status across Major Paediatric Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Vitamin D Deficiency with Musculoskeletal Symptoms among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Multisystem Manifestations of Paediatric Rheumatic Diseases and Their Clinical Associations: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study

Treatment, Medication Safety and Laboratory Monitoring

Pattern of Disease-Modifying Antirheumatic Drug Use among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Medication Patterns among Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Study
Prevalence and Pattern of Glucocorticoid Use among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Current Glucocorticoid Dose with Body Mass Index among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Association of Glucocorticoid Exposure with Blood Pressure among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Prevalence of Cushingoid Features among Children Receiving Long-Term Glucocorticoids for Rheumatic Disease: A Cross-Sectional Study
Bone Health Profile among Children Receiving Long-Term Glucocorticoid Therapy for Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Glucocorticoid Exposure with Vitamin D Levels among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Pattern of Methotrexate Use among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Prevalence and Pattern of Methotrexate-Related Adverse Effects among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Methotrexate Dose with Liver Enzyme Abnormalities among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Laboratory Parameters among Children Receiving Methotrexate and Other Disease-Modifying Antirheumatic Drugs: A Cross-Sectional Study
Pattern of Hydroxychloroquine Use among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Knowledge and Adherence to Ophthalmological Screening among Children Receiving Hydroxychloroquine: A Cross-Sectional Study
Medication Adherence among Children and Adolescents with Chronic Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
Factors Associated with Poor Medication Adherence among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Medication Adherence among Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Study
Biologic Therapy Utilisation among Children with Rheumatic Diseases at a Tertiary Care Centre: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Clinical Characteristics of Children Receiving Biologic Therapy for Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Children Receiving Conventional and Biologic Disease-Modifying Therapy for Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Tuberculosis Screening Profile among Children before or during Biologic Therapy for Rheumatic Disease: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Prevalence of Latent Tuberculosis Infection among Children with Rheumatic Diseases Receiving Immunosuppressive Therapy: A Cross-Sectional Study
Infection Profile among Children Receiving Immunosuppressive Therapy for Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Infection Frequency among Children Receiving Single and Multiple Immunosuppressive Medications: A Cross-Sectional Study
Vaccination Status among Children with Chronic Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Immunosuppressive Therapy with Incomplete Immunisation among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Knowledge and Practices of Caregivers Regarding Medication Safety in Paediatric Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
Laboratory Monitoring Practices among Children Receiving Disease-Modifying Antirheumatic Therapy: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Haematological and Hepatic Abnormalities among Common Antirheumatic Medication Regimens: A Cross-Sectional Study
Medication Use, Adherence, Safety and Monitoring Profile among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study

Quality of Life, Functional Status, Psychosocial and Practical Paediatric Rheumatology

Health-Related Quality of Life among Children with Chronic Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
Comparative Evaluation of Quality of Life among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus and Juvenile Dermatomyositis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Disease Activity with Health-Related Quality of Life among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Functional Status among Children with Chronic Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Functional Disability with Quality of Life among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Functional Disability among Major Paediatric Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
School Attendance among Children with Chronic Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Disease Activity with School Absenteeism among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Academic Difficulties among School-Aged Children with Chronic Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Pain Severity with Academic Function among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Sleep Quality among Children and Adolescents with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Association of Pain and Disease Activity with Sleep Disturbance among Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Sleep Quality among Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis and Healthy Controls: A Cross-Sectional Study
Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms among Adolescents with Chronic Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Functional Disability with Psychological Distress among Adolescents with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Body Image Concerns among Adolescents with Chronic Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Caregiver Burden among Parents of Children with Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Study
Association of Child Functional Disability with Caregiver Burden among Families of Children with Rheumatic Disease: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Comparative Evaluation of Caregiver Burden among Families of Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: A Cross-Sectional Study
Psychological Distress among Parents of Children with Chronic Rheumatic Diseases: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Knowledge of Childhood Rheumatic Diseases among Parents and Caregivers: A Cross-Sectional Study
Knowledge and Practices Regarding Exercise among Caregivers of Children with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Study
Knowledge and Practices Regarding Sun Protection among Children with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus and Their Caregivers: A Cross-Sectional Study
Awareness of Warning Symptoms Requiring Rheumatology Referral among Primary Care Pediatricians: A Cross-Sectional Study
Referral Pattern of Children Attending a Paediatric Rheumatology Clinic: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Spectrum of Diagnoses among Children Referred for Suspected Rheumatic Disease: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Comparative Evaluation of Confirmed Rheumatic and Non-Rheumatic Diagnoses among Children Referred to Paediatric Rheumatology: A Cross-Sectional Study
Diagnostic Delay and Associated Factors among Children with Chronic Rheumatic Diseases Presenting to a Tertiary Care Centre: A Cross-Sectional Analytical Study
Clinical, Functional and Psychosocial Profile of Children Attending a Paediatric Rheumatology Clinic: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study
Spectrum of Paediatric Rheumatic Diseases and Their Clinical, Laboratory and Functional Characteristics at a Tertiary Care Hospital: A Cross-Sectional Observational Study

Alongside paediatric rheumatology protocols and synopses, support is also available for departmental presentations, journal club presentations, ethics committee presentations, and posters and oral presentations for medical conferences — for postgraduate residents, board trainees and research scholars across India and the GCC. Prepared by a practising doctor with long experience in medical publishing and thesis supervision.

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Paediatric rheumatology research outside India

The topics above work as research questions anywhere — what changes is the document the institution expects, and who approves it before data collection begins. The Gulf equivalent of an Indian synopsis is the paediatric rheumatology research proposal submitted to an institutional review board, and it ordinarily carries three sections an Indian synopsis does not: a Gantt chart, a budget and resources section, and a Declaration of Helsinki statement.

Board and residency programmes — country by country

Saudi Arabia — SCFHS and the Saudi Board. Residency and fellowship training under the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties includes a research project with a set timeline, and the paediatric rheumatology research proposal is the document prepared at the outset and cleared by the institutional review board before recruitment starts.

United Arab Emirates — DHA, DOH Abu Dhabi and MOHAP. Residents training in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and the northern emirates prepare a paediatric rheumatology research protocol for their programme and submit it for institutional review board approval before any data are collected.

Qatar — QCHP and Hamad Medical Corporation. A paediatric rheumatology IRB proposal is reviewed before recruitment, with the ethics section written to the institution's own template rather than a generic one.

Bahrain — NHRA. Trainees turning paediatric rheumatology research topics into a project need the proposal cleared by their institutional research and ethics committee before fieldwork begins.

Oman — OMSB. Residency programmes under the Oman Medical Specialty Board include a research component, and the paediatric rheumatology research proposal is the document assessed at the start of it.

Kuwait — KIMS. A paediatric rheumatology study protocol goes to the institutional committee for approval before the project begins.

Arab Board programmes across the region. The Arab Board carries its own research requirement irrespective of the host country, and the paediatric rheumatology proposal follows the same structure throughout.

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Postgraduate degrees — Malaysia, the Gulf and beyond

Malaysia — MMed, the National Medical Research Register and MREC. A paediatric rheumatology dissertation proposal for a Master of Medicine programme carried out in a Ministry of Health facility must be registered on the NMRR and approved by the Medical Research and Ethics Committee before the study begins, and the guidance asks for submission four to six months ahead of data collection. Every investigator on the study team registers on the NMRR as well, so the methodology, ethics and team sections are written in far more detail than an Indian synopsis requires.

PhD and Master's candidates elsewhere. University programmes generally require a full paediatric rheumatology research proposal of roughly 6,000 to 10,000 words, with an extended literature review, a theoretical framework and a detailed methodology chapter.

These are written individually, by a medical doctor, with no artificial intelligence generation and no plagiarism, and revised until the supervisor accepts them.

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🔥 Trending research areas in paediatric rheumatology for 2026–27

Treat-to-target audits using the clinical JADAS. The clinical variant omits the acute-phase reactant, so time to inactive disease can be tracked in units where ESR is not drawn at every visit, and the target-based follow-up schedule can be audited against what the clinic actually achieved.
Paediatric musculoskeletal ultrasound for subclinical synovitis. Age-related normal appearances of unossified cartilage and the paediatric definitions of joint effusion and synovial hypertrophy are now published, so ultrasound findings in children can be scored against paediatric standards instead of adult ones, and joints that look clinically quiet can be examined properly.
Methotrexate intolerance and biologic drug survival. Anticipatory nausea and aversion drive discontinuation more often than laboratory toxicity does, and both intolerance scoring and drug survival can be reconstructed from prescription and follow-up records without any new investigation.
Transition readiness and adherence in adolescents. Children with juvenile arthritis and childhood lupus are now surviving into adult services in numbers, and readiness, adherence and loss to follow-up at transfer are measurable with validated questionnaires alone.

Protocol and synopsis guidance

What a paediatric rheumatology protocol must contain

One named classification set, applied to every child. The protocol must state which criteria are being used and the year of that version — ILAR 2001 or the PRINTO 2019 provisional criteria for juvenile idiopathic arthritis, the 2019 EULAR/ACR or the SLICC 2012 criteria for childhood lupus, the 2017 EULAR/ACR criteria or the older Bohan and Peter criteria for juvenile dermatomyositis, and the Ankara 2008 paediatric criteria for the vasculitides. The two sets in each pair do not select the same children, and category proportions shift between them. In a retrospective series spanning several years, one set is re-applied to every record from the whole study period; criteria are not applied as they stood in the year the child presented.

A rule for cases that cannot be classified. When a record lacks an item a criteria set requires, that child is unclassifiable, which is not the same as criteria negative. The protocol states in advance how unclassifiable records are counted and reported, and they are reported as their own number rather than folded into the negative group.

An observation window before category is assigned. Juvenile idiopathic arthritis category is defined by the first six months of disease, and extended oligoarticular arthritis can only be recognised after six months have passed. A cross-sectional study that assigns category at a single early visit is measuring category at enrolment, and must say so. Category-based analysis is either restricted to children with at least six months of disease duration, or the limitation is stated plainly. Rheumatoid factor positive polyarthritis requires two positive tests at least three months apart; a single positive sample does not establish that category.

An operational definition of an active joint, and who counts it. The accepted definition is a joint with swelling, or with limitation of movement accompanied by pain or tenderness. The protocol names who performs the count, whether that person is the treating clinician, and whether a second examiner assesses a subset so that inter-observer agreement can be reported.

The exact activity index variant and its formula. JADAS-10, JADAS-27 and JADAS-71 differ in the joints counted; JADAS includes a normalised acute-phase reactant while the clinical JADAS does not. The protocol names one variant, states the visual analogue scales used for physician and parent global assessment and their anchors, states which acute-phase reactant is used and by which laboratory method, and does not mix variants across visits. For childhood lupus, SLEDAI-2K items refer to the preceding ten days and several require anti-dsDNA and complement drawn within that window; if the protocol is retrospective, it must state what happens when those results are absent.

Outcome definitions that carry their duration requirement. Inactive disease, clinical remission on medication and clinical remission off medication are separate states with different duration requirements of continuous inactivity. A single-visit design can report inactive disease at that visit and cannot report remission. Damage indices require damage present for at least six months and score zero by definition in a newly diagnosed cohort.

Instruments named with their paediatric thresholds. The Beighton score uses a higher cut-off in children than in adults, and hypermobility falls with age, so any prevalence must be age stratified and the cut-off used must be stated. The childhood health assessment questionnaire has a marked floor effect and an age-dependent handling of items a young child could not perform regardless of disease; the protocol states the version, the recall period, the language and whether a validated translation was used.

An ascertainment rule for uveitis. Juvenile idiopathic arthritis associated uveitis is anterior and asymptomatic, and is found only when a slit lamp is used on schedule. The protocol defines the denominator as children who actually underwent slit lamp examination within a stated window, states the screening interval applied, and does not report a figure drawn from children examined only because they complained of a red eye.

Drug exposure at the moment of measurement. Steroid dose, methotrexate dose and route, and biologic agent and date of last dose are recorded alongside every activity score, because several score components respond to the drug as well as to the disease.

Paediatric rheumatology synopsis versus paediatric rheumatology protocol

They are two documents with different readers. The synopsis is the short structured form the university requires for topic registration, usually a few pages covering title, introduction, review of literature, aims and objectives, methodology, sample size, statistical plan and references. The protocol is the longer document the institutional ethics committee approves and the one the completed thesis is later judged against.

What the synopsis can leave implicit, the protocol must state. A synopsis may reasonably say that children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis attending the paediatric rheumatology clinic will be enrolled. The protocol has to name the criteria set and version, define an active joint, name the activity index variant and the acute-phase reactant with its laboratory method, state the minimum disease duration before category is assigned, describe how drug exposure is captured at each measurement, and define the screening pathway through which uveitis is ascertained.

The methodology section is where most rework happens. Where a synopsis says that disease activity will be assessed, the protocol specifies the score, who administers the global scales, in what language, at which visits, and what is done when a component is missing. Where a synopsis says data will be collected from records, the protocol specifies the years covered, the source registers, the extraction proforma and the rule for unclassifiable cases.

The order in practice. The protocol is written first and the synopsis is condensed from it, because the reverse produces a registered title the protocol cannot honour. Once the ethics committee has approved a version, deviations require documented amendment; a title or objective changed informally after approval is a problem at submission.

Both carry the same sample size. The number in the synopsis, the number in the protocol and the number in the finished thesis must agree, and the assumptions behind that number must appear in both documents in the same form.

Sample size and statistical analysis in paediatric rheumatology

Start from what the clinic sees, then state the precision that buys. A single tertiary unit may register a few dozen new children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis in a year and only a handful with juvenile dermatomyositis or systemic sclerosis. The honest approach is to take the achievable number over the data collection period, compute the confidence interval width it produces for the main proportion, and state that precision in the protocol, rather than choosing an anticipated proportion that happens to return a convenient number.

Proportion estimates. For a prevalence or proportion, use the standard formula with an anticipated proportion taken from a cited paediatric series, preferably Indian, and an absolute precision rather than a relative one. Where the expected proportion is small, absolute precision of five per cent is meaningless and the interval should be reported directly.

Agreement is not correlation. Two examiners counting active joints, or a comparison of JADAS against the clinical JADAS, is an agreement question. Categorical agreement uses kappa with its confidence interval, continuous agreement uses the intraclass correlation coefficient with the model stated, and method comparison uses Bland and Altman limits of agreement with a plot. A correlation coefficient between two scores that share three of four components will be high and will mean nothing.

Uveitis and other screening-dependent outcomes. Because detection depends on how often a slit lamp is used, the figure reported is a cumulative incidence over a stated follow-up period with the examined children as denominator. When follow-up duration varies between children, Kaplan and Meier estimation is more defensible than a crude proportion.

Time to inactive disease needs survival methods. Children enter the cohort at different points and many are still active when data collection ends. Analysing this as a proportion at an arbitrary cut-off discards the censored children; Kaplan and Meier estimation with log rank comparison, or Cox regression where the sample allows, is the correct treatment.

Repeated measurements on the same child are not independent. Serial JADAS or SLEDAI values from the same child require repeated measures or mixed effects analysis. Pooling every visit from every child into one row inflates the apparent sample and produces confidence intervals that are far too narrow.

Distributions. Active joint counts are heavily skewed and contain many zeros, and disease duration and steroid dose are rarely normal. Report median with interquartile range, use non-parametric comparisons, and if counts are modelled, consider negative binomial regression rather than forcing a linear model onto them.

Missing components and multiplicity. Retrospective activity scores lose components when a laboratory value was not drawn; the rule must be pre-specified, and a missing acute-phase reactant is never imputed as zero. In a series of thirty to sixty children, one primary outcome is pre-specified and the remaining comparisons are declared exploratory, because unstructured testing across a wide proforma will always produce a significant result somewhere.

Frequently Asked Questions – Paediatric Rheumatology Thesis Topics (2026–27)

1. How do I choose a feasible paediatric rheumatology thesis topic?

Start from the register, not from the literature. Count how many children with the disease you have in mind attended your unit in the last two or three years, and assume the coming year will be similar. For juvenile idiopathic arthritis and immunoglobulin A vasculitis, most units have enough children for a prospective study. For juvenile dermatomyositis, systemic sclerosis and the periodic fever syndromes, the same unit may see three or four a year, and a prospective design will not fill.

Then check that every variable in your proforma already exists in routine care. A topic that needs one extra questionnaire is feasible; a topic that needs an antibody panel your laboratory does not run, or a repeat imaging study the child does not clinically need, is not. For a 2026 admission, allow that ethics approval, registration and pilot testing will consume the first few months, leaving a shorter recruitment window than the calendar suggests.

2. Which study designs are accepted for a paediatric rheumatology thesis?

Cross-sectional observational studies are the most common and are appropriate for describing a clinical and demographic profile, estimating the frequency of a manifestation, or comparing two instruments in the same children at one visit.

Prospective observational cohorts suit disease activity over time, time to inactive disease, and outcome after a treatment change, provided the follow-up interval is realistic for the thesis period.

Retrospective record-based studies are accepted and are often the only workable design for rare disorders, provided the records genuinely contain the variables and the protocol states how incomplete records are handled.

Diagnostic accuracy and agreement studies are accepted where a defensible reference standard exists. Where two definitions are being compared and neither is a reference standard, the study is an agreement study and must be described as one.

Interventional designs are rarely approved at thesis level in this subject because the disorders are chronic, the drugs carry real toxicity and the sample is small. A randomised comparison of two established supportive measures may be acceptable; a randomised comparison of disease-modifying agents will not be.

3. What should I settle with my guide before writing the protocol?

The criteria set and version for every disease in the study, and whether it will be applied prospectively or re-applied to old records.

The primary outcome, stated as one measurable variable with its instrument and timing, not as a topic area.

Who performs the joint count, whether the treating clinician is blinded to anything, and whether a second examiner will assess a subset for agreement.

The activity index variant, the acute-phase reactant and its laboratory method, and the language and administration of the global scales.

The route to the slit lamp, agreed with ophthalmology in advance, including who examines, at what interval, and how the finding reaches the study proforma.

Access to prescription and pharmacy records, since drug exposure must be recorded alongside every score and is often held outside the clinical file.

The sample size and its assumptions, agreed before registration so that the number does not change between synopsis and thesis.

4. What can I do if the disorder I want to study is rare at my centre?

Widen the time window rather than the case definition. A retrospective series over five to ten years will accumulate enough children with juvenile dermatomyositis, localised scleroderma or an autoinflammatory syndrome to support a descriptive study, where one prospective year would not. Loosening the criteria to fill the sample destroys the study; extending the years does not.

Apply one criteria set across the whole period. Criteria changed during the years most retrospective series cover, so records must be re-classified against a single named set. Children whose records lack an item that set requires are reported as unclassifiable, with their number stated, and are not counted as not having the disease.

Accept that a case series is a legitimate thesis. A carefully characterised series of eighteen children with juvenile dermatomyositis, with a complete proforma and honest reporting of missing data, is worth more than an underpowered comparison built on the same eighteen. State that the study is descriptive and does not aim to test a hypothesis, and the examiner will accept it.

Or keep the rare disease as the question and the common disease as the population. Screening a large cohort of children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis for a specific complication, or studying delay in diagnosis across all referrals with a rheumatic presentation, gives a workable sample while still addressing the area that interests you.

Consider a multicentre extension only with a written agreement. Second-centre data requires that centre's ethics clearance and a named local investigator before collection begins, not afterwards.

5. What is the difference between a synopsis and a protocol?

The synopsis is the short structured document submitted to the university for topic registration, typically covering the title, a brief introduction and review of literature, the aims and objectives, the methodology, the sample size with its calculation, the statistical plan and the references. The protocol is the fuller document the institutional ethics committee reviews and approves, and it contains the operational detail the synopsis compresses: case definitions, the criteria set and version, the proforma, the consent and assent documents, the handling of missing data and the plan for incidental findings.

In practice the protocol is written first and the synopsis condensed from it. The sample size, objectives and title must be identical in both, and any change after ethics approval requires a documented amendment.

6. What ethics committee issues apply to paediatric rheumatology research?

Consent and assent. Written informed consent is taken from a parent or legal guardian for every child. Written assent is taken in addition from the child from about seven years of age, in language the child understands, and a child's refusal is respected even where the guardian has consented. Adolescents who have reached the age of majority during a long follow-up consent for themselves from that point.

Waiver of consent for record-based work. Retrospective studies using existing records may apply for a waiver, and the application must state that the data are anonymised at extraction, that no contact with families is planned and that no identifiers leave the department. If any child is to be recalled for a single additional examination, the waiver no longer covers the study.

No additional radiation or contrast for research. Radiographs, computed tomography, bone densitometry and contrast studies are used only where they were already performed for the child's clinical care. Ultrasound and clinical photography are the additions an ethics committee will normally accept.

No research-only venepuncture beyond a stated limit. Where an extra sample is genuinely required, it is drawn with a clinically indicated sample rather than as a separate prick, and the protocol states a volume ceiling in millilitres per kilogram consistent with national paediatric guidance. Children in this subject are already exposed to repeated monitoring bloods, and committees are appropriately unwilling to add to that burden.

Separate consent for photographs and video. This subject generates images of rashes, nail fold changes, contractures and gait, and heliotrope rash and facial involvement in juvenile dermatomyositis or scleroderma are identifying. Photography and video require their own consent line, with the option to refuse without leaving the study, a stated storage location and a stated policy on publication and teaching use.

A named pathway for the incidental findings this subject actually produces. A study slit lamp examination will find asymptomatic anterior uveitis in a child who was not being screened; a study urine examination will find proteinuria or a raised blood pressure in a child with lupus; monitoring bloods drawn for the study will find transaminitis or cytopenia; interferon gamma release assays performed before biologic therapy will return latent tuberculosis or an indeterminate result; and a screening antinuclear antibody will be positive in children who will never develop rheumatic disease. The protocol names the person to whom each finding is reported, the timeframe, and what is told to the family, and states that a positive antinuclear antibody in isolation is not communicated as a diagnosis.

7. Why do my inactive disease and activity score results look better than the clinic feels?

Because part of the score is measuring the drug. The JADAS family includes a normalised acute-phase reactant. In a child on tocilizumab or another interleukin 6 pathway blocker, ESR and C-reactive protein are suppressed pharmacologically, so that component reads at or near zero whatever the joints are doing. Systemic steroids do the same thing less completely. The result is that children on exactly the agents given for the most severe disease score best on the component the score treats as objective, and unit-level inactive disease rates rise for reasons that have nothing to do with joints.

The clinical variant is a different instrument, not a simplification. The clinical JADAS omits the laboratory item entirely and has its own cut-offs for inactive disease and for low disease activity. A study cannot compute JADAS at some visits and the clinical JADAS at others and pool them, and a cut-off borrowed from one variant cannot be applied to the other. If the acute-phase reactant is unreliable in your cohort because of drug effect or because it is not drawn at every visit, choose the clinical variant from the start and say why.

Inactive disease is a point state; remission is a duration. Inactive disease can be established at a single visit. Clinical remission on medication requires continuous inactivity over a defined number of months and remission off medication requires a longer period after all treatment has stopped. A cross-sectional thesis cannot report a remission rate, and an examiner who knows the definitions will ask about it. Report inactive disease at the study visit, with the drug exposure at that visit stated alongside it, and let the reader see both.

8. How is a PhD research proposal different from an MD or DNB synopsis?

A doctoral proposal is longer and argues a gap rather than describing a plan. It carries a full critical review of the literature, an explicit theoretical or mechanistic framework, several linked studies or phases rather than one, a detailed feasibility and timeline section covering three or more years, a data management and sharing plan, a funding statement and often a preliminary data section.

An MD or DNB synopsis addresses one question with one design inside a single thesis period, and is judged on feasibility and correctness of method rather than on originality of contribution. Doctoral work in paediatric rheumatology also usually requires either multicentre recruitment or a laboratory component, both of which fall outside what a residency thesis can carry.

9. When should I register my thesis topic and start data collection?

Registration deadlines are set by the university or the board and generally fall within the first year of the course, so the topic should be settled and the protocol drafted well before that date. Work backwards from the deadline: allow time for the guide's revisions, for the institutional ethics committee's meeting cycle, which may sit only every second or third month, and for any queries that committee raises.

Data collection begins only after ethics approval is in hand, and prospective data collected before approval cannot be used. A prospective study needs its recruitment window to close with enough months left for analysis, writing, plagiarism checking and binding. If the arithmetic does not leave that margin, a retrospective or record-based design is the safer choice.

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