Patient Education

The ACR and ARHP have prepared information for patients about 28 rheumatic diseases, about the caregivers who treat patients with arthritis, and about several common medications used to treat rheumatic diseases.

Disease-Specific Information:

Listed below are some of the more common diseases and conditions treated by rheumatology health care professionals. Use this information as a starting point in your research about rheumatic diseases.

Antiphospholipid Syndrome (APS)	Myopathies	Reactive Arthritis
Carpal Tunnel Syndrome	Osteoarthritis - Español	Rheumatoid Arthritis - Español
Fibromyalgia - Español	Osteonecrosis	Scleroderma
Giant Cell Arteritis	Osteoporosis - Español	Sjogr en's Syndrome
Gout - Español	Glucocorticoid-induced Osteoporosis	Spinal Stenosis
HCV-Associated Arthritis	Paget’s Disease	Spondylitis
HIV-Associated Rheumatic Disease Syndromes	Polymyalgia Rheumatica - Español	Systemic Lupus Erythematosus - Español
Juvenile Arthritis	Pseudogout	Tendonitis / Bursitis
Lyme Disease	Psoriatic Arthritis	Wegener's Granulomatosis
Metabolic Myopathies

Additional Topics of Note

Back Pain	Heredity and Arthritis	Neck Pain
Clinical Research Trials	The Immune System	Pregnancy and Rheumatic Disease
Exercise and Arthritis- Español	Joint Injection/Aspiration	Sex and Arthritis
Fluorescent Antinuclear Antibody (FANA) Test: "False Positive"	Joint Surgery
Herbal and Natural Remedies - Español	Living Well with a Rheumatic Disease

Information About Medications

This new information for patients describes some of the most common medications being used in rheumatologic care.

Azathioprine Updated!	Leflunomide Updated!
Biologics	Methotrexate Updated!
Cyclophosphamide Updated!	Minocycline Updated!
Cyclosporine Updated!	Mycophenolate Updated!
Gold Updated!	NSAIDs
Hydroxychloroquine Updated!	Sulfasalazine Updated!

Briefing papers on caregivers:

For many patients, care from an interdisciplinary team offers the best results in treating rheumatic diseases. These briefing papers outline the role of many health professionals you might come into contact with as a patient.

What is a Rheumatologist? - Español	The Role of the Advanced Practice Nurse	The Role of the Registered Nurse
The Role of the Occupational Therapist	The Role of the Physical Therapist	The Role of the Social Worker
The Role of Interdisciplinary Team Management	The Role of the Psychologist	The Role of the Rheumatologist