RHEUMATOLOGY IN GERMANY

German rheumatology clinics primarily treat diseases of various origins grouped under the term "rheumatic diseases", whose common hallmark is pain in the musculoskeletal system.

The areas of expertise of German rheumatology clinics include inflammatory and degenerative diseases of the joints and spine, as well as rheumatic soft-tissue disorders and so-called para-rheumatic conditions.

All rheumatology departments and clinics that msp group germany works with are certified centres of excellence; they are headed by outstanding specialists of international standing and offer medical care of the highest quality.

In addition to clinical practice, these medical centres conduct scientific and clinical research into the causes of rheumatic diseases and develop new therapeutic approaches in immunology, experimental rheumatology and the epidemiology of rheumatic diseases.

A distinctive feature of rheumatology in Germany is the multimodal (comprehensive) approach to the problem: each case is regarded not as an isolated disease but as a systemic disorder affecting a whole range of organs and tissues. Treatment in Germany traditionally involves specialists from a variety of fields — nephrologists, dermatologists, pulmonologists, immunologists, cardiologists, orthopaedists and geneticists — which makes it possible to view the problem from different angles and thus choose the right solution.

GERMAN RHEUMATOLOGY CLINICS PROVIDE COMPREHENSIVE DIAGNOSTICS AND TREATMENT OF

DISORDERS OF THE MUSCULOSKELETAL SYSTEM AND CONNECTIVE TISSUE OF INFLAMMATORY AND INFECTIOUS ORIGIN:

• joint diseases of rheumatic origin;
• autoimmune rheumatic diseases;
• disorders of the bursae, muscles and tendons;
• crystal arthritis;
• diseases of the hand and foot caused by inflammatory arthropathies;
• joint and bone infections caused by acute infectious arthritis;
• neck and back pain of rheumatic origin;
• Paget's disease;
• vasculitis.

ACUTE AND CHRONIC DISEASES:

• rheumatoid arthritis;
• psoriatic arthritis;
• reactive arthritis;
• ankylosing spondylitis (Bechterew's disease);
• other spondyloarthritides;
• gout;
• chondrocalcinosis;
• infectious arthritis;
• osteoarthritis;
• juvenile arthritis.

SYSTEMIC CONNECTIVE TISSUE DISEASES:

• systemic lupus erythematosus;
• systemic sclerosis (scleroderma);
• inflammatory myopathies (including polymyositis and dermatomyositis);
• mixed connective tissue disease (Sharp's syndrome);
• Sjögren's syndrome;
• IgG4-related diseases;
• idiopathic panniculitis.

SYSTEMIC VASCULITIDES:

• polyarteritis nodosa;
• eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (Churg-Strauss syndrome);
• microscopic polyangiitis, granulomatosis with polyangiitis (Wegener's granulomatosis);
• IgA vasculitis (Henoch-Schönlein purpura);
• cryoglobulinaemic vasculitis;
• hypocomplementaemic urticarial vasculitis (anti-C1q antibody disease);
• anti-glomerular basement membrane disease (Goodpasture's syndrome);
• Takayasu arteritis, giant cell arteritis (Horton's disease);
• polymyalgia rheumatica;
• other inflammatory vascular disorders.

DISEASES OF THE PERIARTICULAR SOFT TISSUES:

• periarthritis;
• enthesitis;
• enthesopathies;
• tendinitis;
• tenosynovitis.

VARIOUS TYPES OF OSTEOPOROSIS AND OTHER SYSTEMIC DISEASES