Category: Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology
Featured Physician: Amika Sood, MD
Amika Sood, MD, is an assistant professor of medicine in the Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology. Dr. Sood evaluates patients in the UNC Allergy clinic with a broad range of allergic disorders. If she wasn’t a physician, she may have been an interior designer, event planner or professional baker… “The possibilities are endless!”
Drs. Booth and Loeser Receive NIH/NIAMS Grant to Study Effects of Vitamin K on Osteoarthritis
This novel, randomized clinical trial will evaluate if vitamin K supplementation impacts pain and function in patients with knee OA who are vitamin K insufficient. There is a growing body of epidemiological, genetic and biochemical evidence that vitamin K plays a role in maintaining joint health. The study will provide initial data in support of a larger confirmatory trial to det … Read more
Drs. Phanstiel and Loeser Receive $2.5M NIH NIAMS Grant to ID Osteoarthritis Risk Genes
Dr. Richard F. Loeser is the Joseph P. Archie, Jr. Eminent Professor of Medicine in the Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology. Dr. Doug Phanstiel – who is in the Department of Cell Biology and Physiology – is the principal investigator, and Dr. Loeser is a co-principal investigator for the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases grant, “Id … Read more
Dr. Longobardi’s Research Demonstrates Deletion of Ccr2 in Cartilaginous Tissues Reduces Impact of Post Traumatic Osteoarthritis & Pain
Lara Longobardi, PhD, is an associate professor in the the Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology. The research showed early deletion of Ccr2 in aggrecan-expressing cells reduces the initiation, but not the progression, of post traumatic osteoarthritis and its associated pain. View the article published in Osteoarthritis and Cartilage.
Department of Medicine Grants & Funding: August 1 – August 31, 2022
Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology Amanda Nelson, MD, MSCR, RhMSUS, received, a 5-Year, $3.4M NIH grant to investigate intestinal permeability in multi-joint osteoarthritis Saira Sheikh, MD, and team receive $500K NIH U01 “Innovation Award” from FDA’s Office of Minority Health & Health Equity, to advance diversity and representation in lupus. Amanda Nelson, MD, … Read more
Dr. Saira Sheikh and Team Receive $500K NIH U01 Innovation Award to Advance Diversity in Lupus Clinical Trials
Saira Sheikh, MD, is an associate professor of medicine in the Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology and director of the UNC Rheumatology Lupus Clinic. The aim of this 1-year award is to advance equity in lupus clinical trials by identifying, synthesizing, and disseminating innovative approaches and best practices to advance participant diversity in lupus clinical tr … Read more
Dr. Amanda Nelson Receives 5-Year, $3.4M NIH Grant to Investigate Intestinal Permeability in Multi-Joint Osteoarthritis
Amanda E. Nelson, MD, MSCR, RhMSUS, is an associate professor of medicine in the Division Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology. She is a co-principal investigator of the Johnston County Osteoarthritis Project, a 30-year community-based prospective cohort of OA, multiple chronic conditions, pain and disability in Black and White men and women and its new enrollment phase, the John … Read more
Dr. Saira Sheikh Co-Authors Study for a Novel Therapeutic that Shows Promise in Cutaneous Lupus
Saira Sheikh, MD, associate professor in the Division of Rheumatology, Allergy, and Immunology, was the UNC Principal Investigator. The study, recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine, explored treating adults with cutaneous lupus using litifilimab. The trial was conducted at UNC’s Clinical & Translational Research Center (CTRC), a resource through North Caro … Read more
UNC School of Medicine Physician Scientists Training Program Gives Awards to Cultivate the Careers of Upcoming Physician-Scientists
Medicine, like any other scientific field, cannot progress forward without the hard work of new, cutting-edge researchers. In the Department of Medicine, three physician scientist trainees are working to improve the lives of patients who have inflammatory bowel disease, cancer, and food allergies. In light of their promising, hard work, all three have received support from the UN … Read more
Congratulations, Carolina Care Excellence Awardees!
Every year, UNC Hospitals conducts the Press Ganey Medical Practice survey to obtain input from patients. Patients are asked if they would refer their provider’s practice to friends and family in the survey. Over the last year, 154 providers within UNC Hospitals received the highest recommendation from more than 89 percent of their patients, putting them in the top quartile natio … Read more
Dr. Commins Explains How You Can Develop an Allergy to Red Meat if Bitten by This Tick
Dr. Scott Commins, MD, PhD, in the Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology, is an Alpha-gal Syndrome (red meat allergy) expert. He explains how a bite from a Lone Star Tick could impact your health. There’s the more subtle presentation. “They have terrible abdominal cramping and pain and diarrhea, maybe nausea and vomiting, and it’s all actually due to the same allergy,” … Read more
Sheikh’s Grateful Patient Makes $500K Gift to Support Innovative Autoimmune Disease Research at TARC
Ginny and Doug Ware have partnered with Saira Sheikh, MD, to support a new fund that will advance science and improve the lives of individuals with autoimmune diseases. Their generous gift was used to create the Virginia A. and Douglas R. Ware Fund for Excellence in Autoimmune Diseases. “This new Fund will support my vision for a program at the UNC Thurston Arthritis Research Cen … Read more