Navigating the Coronavirus Pandemic:
A Rheumatology Patient’s Guide to Optimal Care
East Penn Rheumatology was established in 1992 in the Lehigh Valley to form a private practice that focused on patients while diagnosing and treating musculoskeletal diseases. Our experienced and caring providers have a combined 40 years’ experience diagnosing and treating bone, joint and muscle conditions. Here at East Penn Rheumatology we will work closely with the patient to create individual programs for our patients with disorders such as arthritis, osteoporosis, lupus, fibromyalgia and autoimmune disorders. Our approach to diagnosing and treating musculoskeletal diseases is an ongoing process based on a combination of the latest research and proven clinical methods and diagnostic testing. Our team is committed to providing the patient with the latest treatment for the best possible outcome.
Muscles
Myopathy is the medical term for muscle disease. Some muscle diseases occur when the body's immune system attacks muscles. The result is misdirected inflammation, hence the name inflammatory myopathies. This damages muscle tissue and makes muscles weak.
What is Rheumatology?
Rheumatology is the non-surgical sub-specialty in internal medicine, devoted to diagnosis and therapy of rheumatic diseases. Physicians who specialize in rheumatology are called rheumatologists. Rheumatologists deal mainly with clinical problems involving joints, soft tissues, autoimmune diseases, vasculitis, and heritable connective tissue disorders. Many of these diseases are now known to be disorders of the immune system. Rheumatology is increasingly the study of immunology. Common problems such as tendonitis, back pain, bursitis and carpel tunnel syndrome can be a result of rheumatologic disorders as well.
Joint stiffness is the sensation of difficulty moving a joint or the apparent loss of range of motion of a joint. Joint stiffness often accompanies joint pain and/or swelling. Depending on the cause of joint stiffness, joint redness, tenderness, warmth, tingling, or numbness of an affected area of the body may be present. Joint stiffness can be caused by injury or disease of the joint and is a common finding in the arthritis conditions