Medicine and Rheumatology

Introduction

Areas of clinical competence

The Simple Departmental Structure (SSD) Medicine and Rheumatology is a center specialized in the diagnosis and treatment of rheumatic diseases, with particular regard to inflammatory diseases of the musculoskeletal system, such as:

rheumatoid arthritis,
psoriatic arthritis,
ankylosing spondylitis and other forms of spondyloarthritis,
Gouty arthritis,
algodystrophy and other primary syndromes form bone edema

Areas of expertise also include connectivity (e.g. systemic lupus erythematosus, systemic sclerosis, Sjogren’s syndrome), systemic vasculitis and fibromyalgic syndrome.

The SSD Medicine and Rheumatology is enabled to prescribe all innovative drugs approved for the treatment of rheumatic diseases (biotechnological drugs and small molecules) and reference center recognized by the Emilia-Romagna RegionRomagna for the diagnosis and treatment of rare rheumatological diseases such as gigantocellular arteritis, systemic sclerosis and Behçet’s disease.

Finally, the activities of SSD Medicine and Rheumatology are complemented by those of the simple structure (SS) "Osteoporosis and metabolic bone diseases", which deals with the diagnosis and follow-up of patients with severe osteoporosis and/or related pathologies.

Benefits provided

At the center are performed all rheumatological services, including:

First rheumatological examination and control rheumatological examination
Arthrocentesis (joint fluid aspiration) for cytochemical and cultural analysis of synovial fluid
Intra-articular or peritendinous infiltrations, freehand and Ecoguidate
Administration of intravenous hospital drugs (e.g. biotechnological drugs, prostaglandin analogues, bisphofonates)
Rheumatological joint and tendon ultrasound
Videocapillaroscopy
Ecoguidate synovial biopsies
Other interventional procedures, in cooperation with the Institute’s other operational units
Rheumatological and internal consulting activities for the other operational units of the Institute

Taking charge

The booking of the first rheumatological examination is made through the methods indicated in the appropriate section of the site, subject to the appointment of your general practitioner for "first rheumatological examination". Further check-ups, if deemed necessary, will be booked directly by the medical staff of the centre. The diagnostic-therapeutic performance other than the first visit is for internal use only and is programmed at the request of one of the doctors of the SSD.

The resident patients, with strong suspicion of rheumatic pathology according to the criteria provided by the diagnostic-therapeutic-care (PDTA) metropolitan "Management of adult rheumatic patient: treatment path for rheumatoid arthritis, spondylitis and connectivity/ vasculitis", they will have access to the fast path through challenging of their general practitioner for "first rheumatological examination" - urgency B.

Research activity

The clinical activities of SSD Medicine and Rheumatology are accompanied by an intense scientific activity, with particular interest in the following fields of research:

Epidemiology of rheumatic diseases
Role of imaging (ultrasound, magnetic resonance, dual-energy CT) in the diagnostic classification and prognostic stratification of patients with rheumatic diseases
Research into new serum and synovial biomarkers for personalised medicine in inflammatory arthropathies
Physiopathological mechanisms of inflammatory arthropathies
New diagnostic and therapeutic approaches in algodistroy and related syndromes
Use of artificial intelligence tools in the diagnosis and prognosis of rheumatic diseases with particular regard to advanced rheumatological imaging analysis (Radiomics)
Cardiovascular and metabolic risk in rheumatic diseases
Correlation between COVID-19 and rheumatic diseases
Association between obesity and fibromyalgia/osteoarthritis and potential role of specific dietary regimes or other lifestyle changes on nociplastic and nociceptive pain
Impact of rheumatic diseases and drugs used in their treatment on the outcome of orthopaedic surgery

The research activities are carried out thanks to the close collaboration between the clinical (medical-nursing) and preclinical staff of SSD Medicina e Reumatologia that integrates a dedicated research laboratory. Thanks to the collaboration between doctors, biologists, nurses and technicians of the SSD Medicine and Rheumatology it was possible to implement a specific biobank, the Rheumatology biobank (RheumaBank), which affects the biological resources center (CRB) of the Institute and, through a certified path, keeps biological samples of patients suffering from rheumatic diseases that are made available to the international scientific community.

The commitment of the researchers of SSD Medicine and Rheumatology translates into a rich scientific production in important journals.

Teaching activities

The SSD Medicine and Rheumatology, in agreement with the Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences (DIBINEM) of the University of Bologna, is the unique location of curricular and extra-curricular teaching activities (internships, thesis) in field MED/16 Rheumatology of the same university.