Rheumatology, which deals with rheumatic inflammatory diseases and musculoskeletal system diseases that usually occur due to improper functioning of the immune system, corresponds to an area where many people have problems today.

Rheumatology, a speciality in internal medicine and paediatrics, deals with diseases of soft tissues, joints and hereditary connective tissue. The disease commonly known as rheumatism; It causes some pain in the muscles, joints and ligaments that connect these muscles and joints. Pain is accompanied by limitation of movement in the body and sometimes even swelling and deformities. People who deal with these problems and specialise in this field are called rheumatologists.  The rheumatologist deals with the diagnosis and treatment of people who present with these complaints.

In general, rheumatology attributes the causes of all rheumatic diseases to genetic, physical or environmental factors. Rheumatologists working in the field of rheumatology work together with physical therapists in the diagnosis and treatment process. Rheumatology, a branch of science that examines musculoskeletal and rheumatic diseases in general, comes from the Greek word “rheuma”. Any pain, swelling or deformities caused by rheumatism in these areas are diagnosed and treated by this field. Rheumatic diseases, which have more than 200 disease groups, can manifest themselves in very different ways depending on their type. The scope of the disease can be very extensive. In fact, internal organs such as the heart, liver and kidneys can be affected if left untreated.

Rheumatology department is a subdivision of the internal medicine department of hospitals for the treatment of adults suffering from this condition. In children, the departments of nephrology and immunology work together on these cases.

What Diseases Does Rheumatology Cover?

There are many types of rheumatology diseases, which are inflammatory conditions that can occur in bones, muscles and joints. Some of these diseases are very common, while others are quite rare.

Rheumatology deals with diseases of rheumatic origin such as pain, swelling and deformity of muscles, joints and ligaments. Among these, the most common rheumatic diseases are the following:

• Rheumatoid Arthritis
• Osteoarthritis
• Reactive arthritis

The type of disease referred to as rheumatoid arthritis is a disease that occurs mostly in small bone joints. Rheumatoid arthritis, which is frequently encountered in the hands and feet, can also be encountered in large joints such as knees, hips and shoulders.

Osteoarthritis, a degenerative joint disease, is more common in people over the age of 50.  It is most common in the hands, hips, knees and spine. 

Reactive arthritis is an inflammatory joint disorder that develops after an infectious condition in any part of the body, but no microbes are observed in the joints. The condition, which is more common in young and middle-aged people, can affect systems other than the joints.

The category of rheumatic diseases includes more than 200 diseases. But here are some of the most common diseases that rheumatologists have treated:

• Osteoarthritis
• Lupus
• Sjögren’s Syndrome
• Vasculitis
• Behcet’s disease
• Rheumatoid Arthritis
• Spondyloarthropathies
• Psoriatic Arthritis
• Gout
• Infectious Arthritis
• Scleroderma
• Hereditary Mediterranean Anemia

The field of rheumatology also deals with soft tissue diseases;

• Lower back pain
• Fibromyalgia
• It also deals with common conditions such as golfer’s elbow. Even bone diseases, including fluorosis, osteoporosis, osteomalacia, osteomalacia and rickets are within the scope of this field.

Rheumatologists also examine joint damage caused by genetic disorders and deal with conditions such as achondroplasia, hyperextensible joints and Marfan syndrome. 

This process, which mostly manifests itself with discomfort such as pain or swelling in the joints, is characterized by muscle aches, muscle weakness, severe pain in the back and lower back. Apart from this, the following symptoms can be listed:

• Skin rash
• Changes in nails
• Observable hardness of the skin
• Dry eye caused by decreased tear production
• Reduced saliva
• Redness in the eyes
• Prolonged fever
• Shortness of breath
• Bloody phlegm and cough
• Hypersensitivity to the sun
• Paralysis and similar nervous system disorders
• Degeneration of kidney function
• Pale appearance of the fingers

Paediatric Rheumatology, which usually works as a sub-speciality of Paediatrics, has been working as a separate discipline in the USA and many European countries for the last 20–25 years.

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