Referring Doctors

Dear Colleague,

We welcome your patients at our Rheumatology practice and look forward to be of service.

You may fax or email your referring letter and any relevant blood results or give it to the patient to bring along.

Regards
Francois van Zyl

The spectrum of work as Rheumatologist includes:

Inflammatory Arthritis (Rheumatoid arthritis).
Spondiloarthropathies (Juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, Reactive arthritis, Psoriatic arthritis, Arthritis associated with inflammatory bowel disease, Ankylosing spondylitis).
Infectious arthritis.
Connective Tissue Disease (Lupus, Scleroderma, Sjogren’s syndrome, Dermatomyositis, Polymyositis, Mixed connective tissue disease (MCTD), Unspecified connective tissue disease (UCTD), Polymyalgia rheumatica, Antiphospholipid antibody syndrome).
Systemic Vasculitis.
Uncommon Rheumatic Diseases (Amyloidosis, Hemochromatosis, Relapsing polychondritis).
Osteoarthritis.
Regional Musculoskeletal Disorders (Degenerative disk disease, Radiculopathy, Spinal stenosis, Bursitis/tendinitis, Tenosynovitis, Hypermobility syndrome, Regional pain syndromes, Repetitive use syndromes).
Fibromyalgia/Myofascial Pain.
Metabolic Bone Disease (Osteoporosis, Paget’s disease).
Crystal Induced Arthropathy (Gout and CPPD disease).
Pregnant Women with Rheumatic Diseases.

Teamwork

We would like to stress the importance of teamwork in Rheumatology. The referring Medical Practitioner, Rheumatologist, Physiotherapist, Occupational Therapist, Social Worker and Orthopedic Surgeon all make important contributions to optimal patient care.

Although Rheumatology is a relatively young discipline (pioneered by Joseph Hollander in 1949), it certainly is one of the most satisfying specialties. Patients benefit in functional outcome, slowing of disease progression and prevention of complications and disability.

Reasons for referral include:

Diagnostic uncertainty.
Uncontrolled symptoms.
Increasing disability or deformity.
Disease complications.
Management uncertainty.
Consideration of immunosuppressive therapy.
Proposed surgical intervention.
Need of procedures (intra-articular, intra-tendonsheath and intra-bursa injection).
Medication complications.