Comprehensive Rheumatology Care at UCLA Health: A Focus on Innovation and Patient-Centered Treatment

UCLA Health stands as a leading academic medical center, offering a comprehensive range of rheumatology services. With a commitment to patient care, cutting-edge research, and innovative treatments, UCLA Health's rheumatology division is dedicated to improving the lives of individuals affected by rheumatic diseases, autoimmune disorders, and connective tissue conditions.

Expertise and Comprehensive Services

UCLA Health's rheumatology division boasts a team of experts in research, education, and clinical care. They diagnose and treat a wide array of conditions affecting the joints, connective tissues, tendons, ligaments, and bones, including various forms of arthritis, autoimmune diseases, and connective tissue disorders. The rheumatologists at UCLA Health offer a range of services on both an inpatient and outpatient basis, ensuring patients receive the care they need in the most appropriate setting. Highlights of the division include expertise and expanded treatment options, a holistic approach, and a focus on education.

Conditions Treated

Rheumatologists at UCLA Health are experts in treating a wide range of conditions, including:

Arthritis: Chronic joint inflammation that causes stiffness, pain, and swelling.
Fibromyalgia: A chronic condition causing widespread pain and tenderness throughout muscles and bones.
Gout: Uric acid buildup in joints, leading to inflammation and pain.
Lupus: An autoimmune disease where the immune system attacks the body's tissues, such as joints, skin, lungs, or kidneys.
Myositis: A rare disease causing muscle, skin, and lung inflammation.
Osteoarthritis: Cartilage wear-down, causing joint pain and stiffness.
Scleroderma: A chronic connective tissue disease causing skin and tissue tightening and hardening.
Vasculitis: Blood vessel inflammation that can restrict blood flow and lead to organ or tissue damage.

Diagnostic Tools and Treatments

The rheumatology team at UCLA Health offers a full range of tests and treatment options, including:

Musculoskeletal imaging: CT scans or MRIs to view bones, joints, and soft tissues.
Ultrasounds: Sound waves to produce real-time images of nerves, muscles, and joints.
Cortisone shots: Steroid injections to relieve inflammation in specific areas.
Medication: Medicines to lower inflammation and reduce pain.
Holistic remedies: Treatments like acupuncture or massage therapy to decrease pain and improve quality of life.

Subspecialty Programs and Services

UCLA Health's Division of Rheumatology includes several subspecialty programs and services, ensuring patients receive targeted and advanced treatment. These areas of care include:

Connective Tissue Disease - Interstitial Lung Disease (CTD-ILD) Program: This program addresses CTDs, which affect the body's structural components, and ILD, which leads to lung inflammation and scarring. Patients can see all necessary specialists in one coordinated visit, thanks to a partnership with the pulmonology team.
Gout Program: Recognizing gout as the most common form of inflammatory arthritis, this program focuses on active research to improve the quality of care for the 8.3 million adults in the United States affected by the condition.
Vasculitis Program: As the first of its kind in Southern California, this program offers comprehensive, multidisciplinary care for vasculitis, a rare group of conditions where the immune system attacks blood vessels and causes inflammation.

A Holistic Approach to Patient Care

UCLA Health is committed to providing the most advanced medical treatments, as well as complementary therapies. Treatment strategies such as acupuncture or massage may be recommended to improve patients' quality of life, depending on their condition.

Research and Innovation: Dr. Christina Charles-Schoeman's Contributions

Dr. Christina Charles-Schoeman, Chief of the UCLA Division of Rheumatology, exemplifies UCLA Health's commitment to research and innovation. Her work focuses on understanding the mechanisms driving rheumatoid arthritis and conducting clinical trials to improve patient outcomes.

Understanding Rheumatoid Arthritis

Rheumatoid arthritis, a chronic inflammatory disease affecting the joints, impacts countless individuals worldwide. While there is no cure, Dr. Charles-Schoeman and other researchers are dedicated to expanding medical knowledge of rheumatoid arthritis and isolating the most effective treatments for the disease.

Patients develop rheumatoid arthritis when their immune systems attack healthy tissue. While the mechanisms through which the immune system attacks healthy tissue are understood, the trigger for the initial immune attack remains unknown.

Cardiovascular Disease and Rheumatoid Arthritis

Dr. Charles-Schoeman's research has focused on understanding why patients with RA suffer a markedly increased risk of cardiovascular disease, which appears to be related to chronic inflammation. Her lab group's work has demonstrated that the function of lipoproteins carrying "good cholesterol" (high-density lipoproteins or HDL) is abnormal in RA patients with active disease. The HDL particles in these patients differ in their protein composition and anti-inflammatory functions. This dysfunctional HDL may even promote inflammation in blood vessels and joints.

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Her studies of the interplay between lipid metabolism and rheumatoid arthritis have yielded significant findings:

Treatments that reduce inflammation associated with rheumatoid arthritis can improve HDL composition and function, as well as change cholesterol levels.
A novel mechanism (increases in cholesterol ester catabolism) may help explain changes in cholesterol levels in rheumatoid arthritis patients during therapy.

Dr. Charles-Schoeman hopes that a better understanding of inflammatory lipid pathways in patients with RA will not only reduce cardiovascular disease but also identify potential novel treatment targets for better, safer control of the arthritis itself.

Idiopathic Inflammatory Myopathies: Dermatomyositis and Polymyositis

In addition to her research and care of patients with rheumatoid arthritis, Dr. Charles-Schoeman is also dedicated to making a difference in the lives of patients suffering from idiopathic inflammatory myopathies, a rare group of inflammatory muscle diseases. These diseases cause marked muscle weakness and may be associated with rashes and other multi-organ damage, including life-threatening lung disease. Dr. Charles-Schoeman and her research team are currently growing one of the largest groups studying and treating inflammatory myositis on the West Coast.

Education and Training

UCLA Health is committed to education, with a local, national, and international impact. For example, they oversaw the preparation of national guidelines for preventing steroid-induced osteoporosis. Patients can be confident that they are receiving care from experts who are paving the way in innovation. The Rheumatology Fellowship Program at Olive View-UCLA Medical Center is a dynamic clinical and research program with a long history of training outstanding board-certified rheumatologists.

Accessing Care at UCLA Health

UCLA Health makes it easy to refer patients to their services. The referral team provides personalized help to patients, no matter where they are located.

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Other Health Services at UCLA Health

In addition to rheumatology, UCLA Health offers a wide array of medical services, including:

Adaptive sports
Allergy, asthma, and immunology
Amputation care
Audiology
Blind and low vision rehabilitation
Cancer care
Caregiver support
Chiropractic
Dental/oral surgery
Dermatology
Emergency care
Endocrinology
Geriatrics
Homeless Veteran care
Intimate partner violence support

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