Rheumatology is a relatively novel branch in the medical field that deals with non -surgical management of musculoskeletal disorders. This specialty also covers various auto immune diseases that are often multi -system and need holistic approach to the management. Majority of them are chronic conditions that require long term medical care. These often require multidisciplinary input (including rheumatologist, physiotherapist, occupational therapist, and podiatrist and specialist nurses) and patients need long term medical as well as emotional support. Contrary to the belief, many of these disorders affect young people as well as children and if not diagnosed and treated early can lead to long term disability and morbidity. There has been a revolution in this field with newer diagnostic techniques that enable early detection of these conditions and breakthrough treatments that can prevent disease progression and morbidity. There has been a great change in the management of chronic conditions that require patients to have frequent clinic visits for monitoring purpose. In most parts of the world, care of chronic conditions has been relocated in the community based clinics rather than hospitals in order to avoid the time spent, to reduce emotional burden on patients and to reduce risks of hospital acquired infections.
Rheumatological conditions are on the rise worldwide including UAE and due to lack of early diagnosis many people eventually develop adverse outcomes in the prime time of their life. Many young people suffer from pain, disability, deformities and loss of function of their joints. Early diagnosis and treatment appears to be a key factor in preventing long term consequences that are not limited to joints but can have multi organ involvement such as cardiovascular diseases. This also contributes to the economic burden on healthcare cost providers. There appears to be general scarcity of Rheumatologists in UAE and lack of awareness of these conditions often leads to patients seeking advice from non-rheumatological specialists such as orthopedists, family physicians or internists. Early diagnosis and treatment is the key to prevent progression of these condition
