Rheumatology Crash Course for the Non-Rheumatologist

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Rheumatology is a complicated field of medicine with over 100 disorders of the musculoskeletal system, many of which have an autoimmune, inflammatory, or systemic basis. It can be a daunting field for the non-Rheumatologist. This is due to our diseases involving nearly all fields of medicine, the limitations of imaging or laboratory studies alone in making definitive diagnoses, and the dynamic nature of newer therapeutics.  The goal of this presentation is to help provide clarity and to update some of these various topics.  

Learning Objectives

Following the completion of this lecture, the participant will be able to:

1. Delineate rheumatic causes of pain, reviewing rheumatologic methods, as well as osteopathic principles of assessing the body as a whole
2. Identify the utility and pitfalls of common rheumatologic labs
3. Explore safety and side effect profile of common rheumatologic medications
4. Review rheumatologic disease pearls