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Pain in tailbone area

Hey everyone,
My son has been having terrible pain in his tailbone area for the three weeks that doesn’t seem to be going away. He’s had no falls. It doesn’t hurt when touched...just there when he moves in certain ways. His GI Dr. checked him out and said that it doesn’t look like it’s Crohn’s related. I’m wondering if anyone’s kids have experienced random pains. Grateful to say that he’s been doing much better other than this.
 

crohnsinct

Well-known member
Second the rheumy but also could be a pilonidal cyst starting to form. O has gotten them twice and first sign is tail bone pain. They are benign but she needed outpatient simple surgery to get rid of hers
 
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Maya142

Moderator
Staff member
It could certainly be a rheumatological issue. Enthesitis Related Arthritis is a subtype of Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA) that can affect the sacroiliac joints and spine, including the tailbone. It also tends to affect large limb joints, like knees, ankles and hips, though really any joint can be involved, from the fingers to the jaw. Pain tends to be worse after inactivity (sitting through class or a movie or sleeping) and gets better with movement. Morning stiffness is another very common symptom, and for joints other than the spine, you might seeing swelling or redness and they'll be painful if they're involved. ERA is the subtype of JIA that's most commonly associated with IBD.
Does any of that match his symptoms? If so, I'd see a pediatric rheumatologist.
 
Hey everyone,
My son has been having terrible pain in his tailbone area for the three weeks that doesn’t seem to be going away. He’s had no falls. It doesn’t hurt when touched...just there when he moves in certain ways. His GI Dr. checked him out and said that it doesn’t look like it’s Crohn’s related. I’m wondering if anyone’s kids have experienced random pains. Grateful to say that he’s been doing much better other than this.
What a coincidence I should read this. My daughter with crohns has had the same problem for the last three weeks. Her pain is only when she stands up from sitting on chairs, mainly the hard seats at school. Once she is standing the pain dissapears. Also happens if she moves around in her seat. We have seen our Gp about it and he is sending her for physio.
 
Hi, my son used to say this exact same thing to me, that his tailbone hurts when he sits but the pain was not persistent. This was way back in his early teens. He only mentioned it a couple of times and I didn't think anything of it. This was surely a sign of his arthritis. He now has AS. An MRI was the best way to see if anything is going on with his Si joint. My son has arthritis in both hips and some erosion of is Si joint. If I knew this information way back then, it would have not progressed to his hips. He wasn't diagnosed until 19 when Crohn's was also diagnosed. So I'm glad you are paying attention to this and if it persists, I would push for further testing.
 

Maya142

Moderator
Staff member
@Lizzyg That does sound like inflammatory back pain - it gets worse with rest (like sitting through class) and better with movement. My daughters have AS and have had the same kind of pain for years. Hard chairs at school also made the pain worse for them - in college, one of my daughters was told by her physical therapist to carry a special cushion to take the weight off her sacroiliac joints and spine. Spondyloarthritis (AS is a type of Spondyloarthritis) is the type of arthritis most commonly associated with IBD. It's called Enthesitis Related Arthritis in kids.

I would definitely see a rheumatologist - I'd ask for a referral ASAP.
 
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