The Division of Rheumatology and Immunology at Duke University Medical Center was one of the first rheumatology units established in this country and is now widely recognized as one of the most pre-eminent.
Working to Combat Scleroderma
Ankoor Shah, MD, assistant professor of medicine, has also assembled a team of specialists to optimize care in a clinic he runs for scleroderma, a disease that leads to hardening of the skin and severe lung disease. “We have a model of care for lupus that has worked for several years, and so we want to bring that to scleroderma where we have not previously had a dedicated center,” said Shah, who joined the Duke faculty in 2012. He is also building a scleroderma registry and hopes soon to begin banking blood samples for future research.
Providing Excellent Patient Care
Megan E. B. Clowse, MD, MPH, is an associate professor of medicine in the Division of Rheumatology and Immunology. Her clinical research focuses on the management of rheumatic diseases in pregnancy. She has cared for over 600 pregnancies in women with rheumatic disease, collecting information on these pregnancies initially in the Duke Autoimmunity in Pregnancy Registry and Repository, and now the MADRA (Maternal Autoimmune Disease Research Alliance) registry and repository. She served on the Core Leadership Team for the inaugural American College of Rheumatology's Reproductive Health Guidelines, published January 2020. Dr. Clowse created www.LupusPregnancy.org, a website dedicated to improving lupus pregnancy planning and management for patients and rheumatologists.”
The Duke Division of Rheumatology has a rich history of excellence in all three of our missions—patient care, research, and education. The division continues that tradition of excellence today, with faculty members developing new therapies, offering state-of-the-art care, transforming rheumatology education, and leading national and international organizations.
With additional faculty members and nurse practitioners, and the opening of a rheumatology and infusion clinic at Brier Creek in Raleigh, the division is improving patient access and refining the management of complex diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, scleroderma, gout, and others.
As the Clinical Lead for the Division, Megan Clowse, MD, MPH, associate professor of medicine, said, “We are currently recruiting new doctors to Duke rheumatology with the vision of a robust and enthusiastic and happy cohort of physicians addressing the rheumatology diseases of the Triangle and North Carolina, with easily accessible comprehensive rheumatalogic care that is at the level of Duke’s reputation, as well as compassionate, state-of-the-art, and evidence-based.”