Fellowship Program

Our Rheumatology Division at the Saint Louis University Medical Center is both research and clinically oriented. It has traditionally been rated as one of the top 25 Rheumatology Divisions by the American College of Rheumatology. Our research is centered on studies of autoantibodies in connective tissue diseases (CTD), pathophysiological mechanisms of synovial pathology, complement physiology, and clinical research projects. Our clinical training program is one of the highest rated nationally in both Adult and Pediatric Rheumatology by the American College of Rheumatology. Our Fellowship Program is accredited for both Pediatric and Adult Rheumatology training and is accredited through the American College of Graduate Medical Education. It is a two or three year program, depending on the individual's long-term goals.

The Rheumatology Division at Saint Louis University has a patient base of 2,000 adults and 1,200 children with rheumatic diseases. Our outpatient follow-up Clinic at the University includes mainly patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and other CTD. We see about 1,000 new patients per year. These Clinics run six half-days per week and are administered by Terry L. Moore, M.D., Peri Hickman Pepmueller, M.D.,Rama Bandlamudi, M.D., and Reema Syed, M.D.In our children's clinics, which are overseen by Peri Hickman Pepmueller, M.D., Deborah Wenkert, M.D., Reema Syed, M.D., and Terry L. Moore, M.D., we see approximately 40 outpatients a week at Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital and the Saint Louis University Doctors' Office Building. During the year, about 200 new patients are evaluated. The population consists of juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), SLE, and other CTD patients. We have the largest children's arthritis center in St. Louis, the largest in the state of Missouri, and the eighth largest in the country. Our inpatient service is a consultation service performed at both the Saint Louis University Hospital and Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital with about 200 consults per year.

Our faculty consists of four full-time members (Terry L. Moore, M.D., Rama Bandlamudi, M.D.,Peri Hickman Pepmueller, M.D., and Reema Syed, M.D.), two part-time faculty members (Deborah Wenkert, M.D. and Kathryn Coulson, M.D.), one Visiting Professor (Anil Chauhan, Ph.D.), one adjunct faculty member (Gideon Nesher, M.D.), and six Clinical faculty (Drs. Jack Zuckner, the previous Director of the Division of Rheumatology and a Master of the American College of Rheumatology, Arch M. Ahern, Akgun Ince, Carlo Caciolo, John J. Budd, III, and Sona Kamat). We have five subspecialty resident positions (Fellows) in Rheumatology, usually two first year, two second year, and one third year. Both the Adult and Pediatric Fellowship entail one-to-two years spent in the laboratory. The Fellowship usually results in at least two Clinical and two laboratory publications during this period.

Our research protocols include clinical and basic research studies. We have three on-going research grants. Our laboratory work centers on studies in complement, immune complexes, antinuclear antibodies, rheumatoid factor, anti-CCP antibodies, and cellular-mediated problems in JIA, RA, and SLE. In our laboratory, we have Anil Chauhan, Ph.D., who is performing his research and advising Fellows on their research projects. We have collaborative work with the Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology on complement studies in a mouse model, and with the Immunobiology Division on genetic studies. Our Division publishes on the average of 5-10 research and clinical publications per year in major Rheumatology journals and presents usually 8-10 abstracts at National Meetings yearly.

Fellowship Requirements:

(APPLICANT MUST HAVE MEDICAL SCHOOL FORWARD)

Complete transcript of medical school record and diploma. Letter of recommendation from dean of medical school or designated representative. Letter of recommendation from a member of the department at your medical school responsible for the specialty program for which you are applying, or your program director if you are currently in a postgraduate training program.