Internists and Autoimmune Diseases: the Portuguese National Registry

Authors

  • Tiago Tribolet de Abreu Assistente Eventual de Medicina Interna, Serviço de Medicina 2, Hospital do Espírito Santo-Évora
  • Nuno José Silva *Interno do Internato Complementar de Medicina Interna, Serv. de Med. II, HUC.
  • Deolinda Portelinha Assistente Graduada de Medicina Interna, Serv. de Med., Centro Hosp. de Coimbra.
  • Eugénia Santos Assistente Hospitalar de Medicina Interna, Serv. de Med. 1, Hosp. Egas Moniz
  • Helena Brito *Assistente Hospitalar de Medicina Interna, Serv. de Med. 2, Hosp. Distrital de Faro.
  • Maria João Barros Assistente Graduada de Medicina Interna, Serv. de Med. 2, Hosp. de Curry Cabral
  • Paulo Barbosa Assistente de Medicina Interna, Serv. de Med. 2, Hosp. Geral de Santo António SA
  • Luís Campos Chefe de Serviço, Coordenador do Núcleo de Estudos de Doenças Auto-imunes da Sociedade Portuguesa de Medicina Interna

Keywords:

autoimmune diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, Sjögren, internal medicine, anti-TNF

Abstract

Background: The clinical variability and the diagnostic diffi culty
inherent to all autoimmune diseases leads to their frequent diagnosis and treatment by Internal Medicine specialists. Although it
is known that many Portuguese internists work in this fi eld, the
real dimension of this activity is unknown.
Methods: An inquiry was sent by mail to the 118 Internal Medicine departments registered in the Portuguese Internal Medicine
Society. The data obtained was put in an electronic database.
Results: We had 44 answers from the 118 Internal Medicine
departments, of which 37 were from departments with a specifi c
activity in autoimmune disease. A total number of 158 internists
follow 6.000 to 13.000 patients with autoimmune disease. The
most prevalent were Rheumatoid Arthritis (1.181-2.305 patients),
Lupus Erythematosus (708-1.395 patients) and Sjögren’s syndrome (320-665 patients). Therapy with anti-TNF agents is given
to 135 patients, in 17 departments.
Conclusions: In Portugal, internists follow a high number of
patients with diverse autoimmune diseases, with a national distribution.

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References

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Additional Files

Published

2006-03-31

How to Cite

1.
Tribolet de Abreu T, José Silva N, Portelinha D, Santos E, Brito H, Barros MJ, Barbosa P, Campos L. Internists and Autoimmune Diseases: the Portuguese National Registry. RPMI [Internet]. 2006 Mar. 31 [cited 2024 May 16];13(1):5-13. Available from: https://revista.spmi.pt/index.php/rpmi/article/view/1582

Issue

Vol. 13 No. 1 (2006): Janeiro/ Março

Section

Original Articles

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