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What are the skills and knowledge required for this job? What are the duties and responsibilities of this job? An adult rheumatologist is an internist who received further training in the diagnosis (detection), and treatment of musculoskeletal disease and systemic autoimmune conditions commonly referred to as rheumatic diseases. These diseases can affect the joints, muscles, and bones causing pain, swelling, stiffness, and deformity. Autoimmune conditions occur when the immune system sends inflammation to areas of the body when it is not needed causing damage/symptoms. These diseases can also affect the eyes, skin, nervous system, and internal organs. Rheumatologists treat joint disease similar to orthopedists but do not perform surgeries. Common diseases treated by rheumatologists include osteoarthritis, gout, rheumatoid arthritis, tendinitis, and lupus. The hallmark of most rheumatic diseases is inflammation that affects the connecting or supporting structures of the body. Often, this means the joints, but inflammation can also impact the tendons, ligaments, bones, muscles, blood vessels, and organs. Accurate diagnosis and patient-specific treatment can reduce symptoms and reduce long-term severity and loss of function related to rheumatologic diseases. 1. Rheumatologists treat more than 120 different diseases 2. They are medical detectives Your primary care physician may send you to a rheumatologist as a last resort after no one else has figured out what’s going on. 3. These doctors may be your doctor for life 4. Rheumatologists won’t be in the operating room 5. A rheumatologist may change your diagnosis along the way The diagnosis your primary care doctor has in mind may not be what your rheumatologist determines. 6. They are specialists who like what they do According to a 2018 survey, if rheumatologists had it to do over again, four out of five them would choose to be a doctor and three out of four would choose the same specialty. That satisfaction may be because they can see the impact they make on patients’ lives and well-being. 7. A rheumatologist shortage is looming There are about 5,000 practicing rheumatologists in America Conditions Treated Ankylosing Spondylitis Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome Behcet’s Disease Bursitis Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Crohn’s Disease/Ulcerative Colitis related arthritis Crystal induced arthritis – gout/pseudo-gout/CPPD Dermatomyositis Epicondylitis – medial/lateral Familial Mediterranean Fever Giant Cell Arteritis Gout IgG4-Related Disease Infection related inflammatory arthritis Inflammatory Bowel Disease related arthritis Inflammatory myositis Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis Lupus Mixed Connective Tissue Disease Osteoarthritis Osteopenia Osteoporosis Paget’s Disease of the Bone Periodic Fever Syndromes Polymyalgia Rheumatica Polymyositis Psoriatic Arthritis Raynaud’s Phenomenon Reactive Arthritis Reiter’s Syndrome Rheumatoid Arthritis Rotator cuff disorders Sarcoidosis Scleroderma Sjogren’s Syndrome Spondyloarthritis Takayasu’s Arteritis Tendinitis Vasculitis When to See a Rheumatologist Do ask about seeing a rheumatologist if you: Have joint pain that doesn’t get better or involves multiple joints Have joint pain and you have close relatives with lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, or other inflammatory disorders Have joint pain and you have a close relative with psoriasis, even if they never had arthritis Have joint pain accompanied by symptoms such as fever, overwhelming fatigue, weight loss, or malaise Don’t put off seeing a rheumatologist because you: Aren’t in much pain. “The amount of pain doesn’t necessarily predict who will have rheumatoid arthritis. Some people mostly have stiffness and not much pain, but if there is joint swelling it’s important to be evaluated,” says Dr. Fraenkel. Are scared of taking medication. “Some people are afraid a rheumatologist will prescribe something they don’t want to take. |
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