Patient Education

RHEUMATOID CONDITIONS

Dr. Soloway has always had a passion for photographing what he sees as noted by his first publication that appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine in 1996, which was a photograph of a patient with Behcet's disease. He has taken thousands of photographs in and around the office to keep patients educated and to show patients before and after pictures. Dr. Soloway can be considered a plastic surgeon amongst rheumatologists.

BEHÇET'S SYNDROME

Behçet's (beh-CHETS) disease, also called Behçet's Syndrome, is a rare disorder that causes inflammation in blood vessels throughout your body. The inflammation leads to numerous symptoms that may initially seem unrelated. The signs and symptoms of Behçet's disease, which may include mouth sores, eye inflammation, skin rashes and lesions, and genital sores, vary from person to person and may come and go on their own. Behçet's is one of the few forms of vasculitis in which there is a known genetic predisposition.

CRYSTALS (CPPD) OR PSEUDOGOUT

CPPD is a type of arthritis that, as the old name of pseudogout suggests, can cause symptoms similar to gout yet a different type of crystal deposit triggers the reaction. CPPD can cause bouts of severe pain and swelling in one or more joints which can limit activity for days or weeks. It also can cause a more lasting arthritis that mimics Osteoarthritis or Rheumatoid Arthritis. The condition most often involves the knees but can affect wrists, shoulders, ankles, elbows, hands or other joints.

DERMATOMYOSITIS AND POLYMYOSITIS

Dermatomyositis (DM) is a connective-tissue disease related to Polymyositis (PM) that is characterized by inflammation of the muscles (muscle weakness) and the skin.

Fabry Disease

Fabry disease (also known as alpha-galactosidase-A deficiency) is an inherited neurological disorder that occurs when the enzyme alpha-galactosidase-A cannot efficiently break down fatty materials known as lipids into smaller components that provide energy to the body. The mutated gene allows lipids to build up to harmful levels in the body's autonomic nervous system (the part of the nervous system that controls involuntary functions such as breathing and heartbeat), as well as in the eyes, kidneys, and cardiovascular system.

GOUT

Gout is a disease hallmarked by elevated levels of uric acid in the bloodstream. In this condition, crystals of monosodium urate (MSU) or uric acid are deposited on the articular cartilage of joints, tendons, and surrounding tissues. Gout may occur in any joint.

HAJDU-CHENEY SYNDROME

Hajdu-Cheney syndrome is an extremely rare genetic disorder of the connective tissue characterized by severe and excessive bone resorption leading to osteoporosis and a wide range of other possible symptoms.

HYPERMOBILITY

Hypermobility describes joints that stretch farther than is normal. For example, some hypermobile people can bend their thumbs backwards to their wrists, bend their knee joints backwards, put their leg behind the head, or other contortionist performances. Hypermobility is characterized by too much joint movement and can lead to arthritis at a younger age than expected. Hypermobility can be found in patients with Ehlers-Danlos, Marfans, Osteogenesis Imperfecta and Sticklers Syndrome.

LUPUS SLE

Systemic lupus erythematosus is a chronic autoimmune connective tissue disease that can affect any part of the body. As occurs in other autoimmune diseases, the immune system attacks the body's cells and tissue, resulting in inflammation and tissue damage.

LYME DISEASE

Lyme Disease is an infectious disease and is the most common tick-borne disease in the Northern Hemisphere. Lyme Disease is transmitted to humans by the bite of infected ticks. Early symptoms may include fever, headache, fatigue, depression and a characteristic circular skin rash called erytheme migrans. Left untreated, later symptoms may involve the joints, heart and central nervous system.

MEDICAL ORTHOPEDICS

Medical Orthopedics is the branch of medicine the deals with the prevention and correction of injuries or disorders of the skeletal system and associated muscles, joints and ligaments, often by surgery.

MISCELLANEOUS

Various pictures of Spondyloarthropathies and other Rheumatic conditions.

MYOSITIS

Myositis is inflammation of your skeletal muscles, which are also called voluntary muscles. These are the muscles you consciously control that help you move your body. An injury, infection or autoimmune disease can cause myositis.

OSTEOARTHRITIS

Osteoarthritis (OA, also known as degenerative arthritis, degenerative joint disease), is a group of diseases and mechanical abnormalities entailing degradation of joints, including articular cartilage and the subchondral bone next to it. Clinical symptoms of OA may include joint pain, tenderness, stiffness, inflammation, creaking, and locking of joints. Osteoarthritis can be primary or secondary.

POLYCHONDRITIS

Polychondritis is a chronic disorder of the cartilage that is characterized by recurrent episodes of inflammation of the cartilage of various tissues of the body. Tissues containing cartilage that can become inflamed include the ears, nose, joints, spine and trachea.

PORPHYRIA

Porphyria is a group of rare inherited or acquired disorders of certain enzymes in which an important part of hemoglobin, called heme, is not made properly. Heme is also found in myoglobin, a protein found in certain muscles. They manifest with either neurological complications or skin problems or occasionally both.

PSORIASIS

Psoriasis is a chronic, non-contagious autoimmune disease which affects the skin and joints. It commonly causes red scaly patches to appear on the skin. The scaly patches caused by psoriasis, called psoriatic plaques, are areas of inflammation and excessive skin production.

REITER'S SYNDROME

Reiter's Syndrome is a painful, specific type of reactive arthritis that develops in reaction to an infection by bacteria. In Reiter's, inflammation typically affects the eyes and urethra, as well as your joints.

RHEUMATIC MANIFESTATIONS OF DIABETES

Diabetes mellitus (DM), a worldwide high prevalence disease, is associated with a large variety of Rheumatological manifestations. In most cases, these affections cause pain and disability, affecting the quality of life of diabetic patients, but once correctly diagnosed, they often respond to the treatment. The association between several Rheumatological disorders and diabetes mellitus is gaining attention with recent data showing that more than 30% of patients with type 1 or 2 diabetes have some hand or shoulder diseases.

RHEUMATIC MANIFESTATIONS OF ENDOCRINE DISEASE

RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic, small joint systematic arthritis that may affect many tissues and organs, but principally attacks the joints producing an inflammatory synovitis that often progresses to destruction of the articular cartilage and ankylosis of the joints.

SARCOIDOSIS

Sarcoidosis is a disease of unknown cause in which inflammation occurs in the lymph nodes, lungs, liver, eyes, skin or other tissues. In people with Sarcoidosis the inflammation doesn't go away, instead some of the immune system cells cluster to form lumps called granulomas in various organs in your body.

SCLERODERMA

Scleroderma is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by fibrosis (or hardening), vascular alterations, and autoantibodies. There are two major forms: Limited cutaneous scleroderma (or morphea) and diffuse cutaneous scleroderma (or systemic sclerosis).

SJOGREN'S SYNDROME

Sjögren's syndrome is a chronic autoimmune disease in which a person's white blood cells attack their moisture producing glands. Sjögren's syndrome can affect many different parts of the body, but most often affects the tear and saliva glands. Patients with this condition may notice irritation, a gritty feeling, or painful burning in the eyes. Dry mouth (or difficulty eating dry foods) and swelling of the glands around the face and neck are also common. Some patients experience dryness in the nasal passages, throat, vagina and skin. Swallowing difficulty and symptoms of acid reflux are also common.

SHINGLES

Shingles is a painful skin rash with blisters caused by the varicella zoster virus, the same virus that causes chickenpox, and is sometimes referred to as herpes zoster. It is contagious and usually occurs in older adults. We offer the shingles vaccine in our office.

VASCULITIS

Vasculitis refers to a heterogeneous group of disorders that are characterized by inflammatory destruction of blood vessels.

WEGENER'S GRANULOMATOSIS - GPA

Granulomatosis with polyangiitis (Wegener's) is a rare blood vessel disease. It can cause symptoms in the sinuses, lungs and kidneys as well as other organs. This is a complex and potentially serious disease. However, with prompt diagnosis, Granulomatosis with polyangiitis-also called GPA can be treated effectively.

OTHER RHEUMATOID CONDITIONS

2848 South Delsea Drive, Suite 2C, Vineland, NJ 08360 (856) 794-9090