Best Rheumatologist in Melbourne

What is rheumatology?

Rheumatology is a medical discipline that deals with the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and research of diseases of the rheumatic type. Under the technical term “diseases of the rheumatic group” are summarized around 400 clinical pictures, which are colloquially referred to as “rheumatism” or “rheumatism”. Typical of rheumatism, which is also commonly referred to as a “widespread disease” because of its frequency, are symptoms of the musculoskeletal system, i.e. the bones and skeletal muscles as well as tendons and connective tissue, accompanied by pain and functional impairments. Metabolic disorders can also occur in connection with diseases of the rheumatic type.

The most well-known diseases the rheumatologist deals with include rheumatoid arthritis characterized by joint inflammation and stiffness (also known as “primary chronic polyarthritis (PCP)”), osteoarthritis due to degenerative processes (“joint wear and tear”) and Metabolic disorders caused by osteoporosis (“bone loss”) and gout.

While internal rheumatology is mostly about preserved (“conservative”) treatment methods and pain relief, the therapies of orthopedic rheumatology often focus on surgical measures and the adjustment of orthotics.

What is a rheumatologist?

The rheumatologist deals with the diagnosis and therapy of rheumatic diseases . Rheumatologists work in specialist practices or specialist clinics. They come from the fields of internal medicine, orthopedics or pediatric and adolescent medicine.

What does the rheumatologist do?

The rheumatologist’s range of treatments includes the following diseases:

Wear-related or age-related rheumatic diseases such as osteoarthritis / gonarthrosis or, for example, degenerative spinal diseases such as facet joint osteoarthritis.
Rheumatoid arthritis (autoimmune and intermittent chronic inflammation of various joints (polyarthritis)): Patients suffer from swollen, painful and deformed joints, especially in the fingers and hands.
Psoriatic arthritis (autoimmune chronic inflammation of the joints that occurs in connection with psoriasis).
Other chronic, autoimmune-related inflammatory diseases of the musculoskeletal system such as connective tissue diseases (collagenosis) and ankylosing spondylitis (chronic inflammatory and painful disease with stiffening of the spine).
Fibromyalgia and other rheumatic diseases of the soft tissues.
Gout and other metabolic disorders that lead to rheumatic complaints.