Rheumatology
Rheumatology - Description
Rheumatology is the clinical discipline involved in diagnosing and treating conditions affecting the locomotor system, namely diseases affecting the bones, joints, muscles, tendons and ligaments.
It therefore includes degenerative diseases such as osteoarthritis, inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, metabolic bone diseases such as osteoporosis, and systemic diseases such as lupus in which extra-articular manifestations may occur (skin – lungs – heart – kidneys, etc.).
It does not cover neurological conditions such as myopathies or myasthenia.
Additional investigations are often needed to help with diagnosis of these diseases.
- Clinical biology investigations (blood tests or synovial fluid analysis)
- Imaging (radiography, CT, ultrasound, MRI, bone scintigraphy)
- Bone densitometry
- Electromyography
In terms of the treatments available, a number of new opportunities are opening up thanks to a more detailed knowledge of the mechanisms involved in rheumatic diseases, leading to more targeted treatments such as the "biological" therapies for many inflammatory diseases: rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, etc.
Patient care is provided by a multidisciplinary team.
Doctors specialising in functional rehabilitation set up locomotor retraining programmes for both inpatients and outpatients.
The physiotherapy, physical therapy and hydrotherapy departments are also involved in treatment, retraining and preventing relapse in diseases affecting the bones and joints.