Rheumatology

Access compassionate, expert care for autoimmune conditions and rheumatic diseases at PIH Health. Work with a team of specialists to meet your unique health needs.

What’s a Rheumatologist?

A rheumatologist is a doctor with special training to evaluate and treat a variety of diseases affecting your joints, muscles and bones. Rheumatologists at PIH Health work with a team of nurses to provide comprehensive care.

Benefits of Rheumatology Care

When you work with the rheumatology team at PIH Health, you may:

• Ease your symptoms
• Enhance your quality of life
• Improve your life expectancy
• Increase your range of motion
• Reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases

When to See a Rheumatologist

Talk to your primary care doctor about seeing a rheumatologist if you experience:

• Difficulty moving your joints
• Pain in your joints, muscles or bones
• Rashes that won’t go away
• Swollen joints

How Often Should I See My Rheumatologist?

Rely on your rheumatologist to determine the frequency of your visits. Depending on your condition, your doctor will decide how many visits you’ll need to meet your health goals.

Conditions We Treat

If you’re 18 or older, get care for:

• Arthritis – Painful swelling of the joints that may make it hard to move
• Rheumatoid Arthritis – A long-term, chronic disease that causes inflammation of the joints
• Gout – Swollen, red and hot joints from inflammatory arthritis
• Lupus – Inflammation in the body from an autoimmune disease that attacks the body’s cells and healthy tissues
• Osteoporosis –Weak, thinning bones that are more likely to break
• Tendinitis – Severe swelling of a tendon (the muscle that connects to bones to help them move)

High-Quality Arthritis Care

Get care for a variety of arthritis-related conditions, including:

• Osteoarthritis – Long-term (chronic) pain and inflammation in your hands, hips, knees, or spine that usually gets worse over time
• Psoriatic arthritis – Red, scaly rashes (psoriasis) that cause joint pain Joint
• Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) – Causes joints to become swollen and lose function over time

Evaluation

At your first appointment, your doctor will:

• Discuss your health history
• Give you a physical exam to assess your health
• Order diagnostic and screening tests
• Develop a treatment plan

Diagnostic & Screening Tests

Benefit from the newest technology and a team of experts to help diagnose autoimmune conditions and rheumatic diseases. Depending on your condition, you may receive:

• Laboratory services
• Imaging services such as an X-ray or MRI
• Energy scan to detect gout
• Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA) scan to check bone density

Arthritis & Rheumatology Treatments

Depending on your condition and symptoms, your doctors may recommend:

• Exercise and nutrition planning
• Joint injections
• Medications
• Physical therapy

Weekly Joint Injection Clinic

Take part in the weekly joint injection clinics on Thursday afternoons. Joint injections can help you increase your joints’ lifespan, so you can walk and regain function.

Telemedicine Appointments

Access your rheumatology care team from the comfort of your home with a telehealth visit. Use your smartphone to video chat with your doctor and nurses to receive care.