Mediclinic City Hospital: What is a Rheumatologist?

What is a Rheumatologist and why you need them

Posted on

29 April 2015

| Last updated on 31 December 2017

Mediclinic City Hospital: What is a Rheumatologist?

The role of the rheumatologist is to diagnose, treat and medically manage patients with joint and muscle disease as well as other auto-immune disorders. Because these health problems are often complex and sometimes affect internal organs (e.g., kidneys, lungs, blood vessels, brain), they benefit from the care of an expert. Only rheumatologists are experts in this field of medicine.

What does a Rheumatologist do?

The rheumatologist assesses:

Joint disorders
Overall function, including physical, mental well-being and level of independence
Results of advanced imaging and lab tests
Treatment options

Need for more assessment and treatment, such as:

referrals to other health care providers
orthopaedic aids (splint, brace, cane, etc.) or corrective surgery
hospital stay

A rheumatologist aims to help patients with rheumatic disease to have the best possible quality of life.

The rheumatologist teaches the patient and family about health information and how to live with a chronic (long-term) rheumatic disease. Topics can include medications, coping mechanisms, techniques for preventing disability or regaining function, and ways to improve quality of life.

At Mediclinic City Hospital, we have expert rheumatologists who specialise in adult and paediatric rheumatic diseases as well as rheumatic conditions in pregnancy.

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Some of the common conditions treated at Mediclinic City Hospital include:

Rheumatoid arthritis
Psoriatic arthritis
Ankylosing Spondylitis
Gout
Osteoporosis
Osteoarthritis
Vitamin D deficiency
SLE (Systemic Lupus Erythematosus)
Systemic Sclerosis
Myositis
Back/Neck pain of varied causes
Fibromyalgia
Chronic fatigue / weakness
Sjogren’s syndrome
Vasculitis
Behcet’s disease
Sarcoidosis

There are several recent advances in the diagnosis and treatment of joint and musculoskeletal problems that can enable early diagnosis and prevention of any long term joint damage. This specialty also encompasses systemic conditions such as vasculitis, SLE (Lupus) and other connective tissue diseases.

Meet the doctors:

Amel Ginawi, Dr., MBBS, FRCP, MSc (Rheum)

Dr. Ginawi treats adults and children with rheumatic diseases . She joins Mediclinic City Hospital from her position as Consultant Rheumatologist and osteoporosis specialist in the Basildon and Thurrock University Hospitals NHS trusts, UK.

Dr. Ginawi completed her training in the Eastern Region and Cambridge University hospitals in the UK. She is a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians.

Her areas of interest include but are not limited to:

Paediatric rheumatology
Osteoporosis
Connective tissue disorders and vasculitis
Early Inflammatory Arthritis/Rheumatoid Arthritis
Fibromyalgia
Soft tissue rheumatism and osteoarthritis

Bhavna Khan, Dr., MRCP, PhD (UK)

Dr. Bhavna Khan treats all adults with rheumatic conditions and specializes in autoimmune rheumatic disorders associated with pregnancy.

Dr. Khan has expertise in rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, systemic sclerosis, inflammatory muscle disorders, metabolic bone disease, chronic musculoskeletal pain disorders and connective tissue disorders. She has vast experience in the management of rheumatoid arthritis and Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (Lupus) and treatment with biologic agents.

She is a Member of the Royal College of Physicians (MRCP) in the UK, American College of Rheumatology, the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) and the British Society of Rheumatology (UK). Dr. Khan completed her specialist training at Mersey Deanery in Liverpool and Manchester(UK) and prior to moving to Dubai worked as a Consultant Rheumatologist in NHS hospitals in Northwest UK.