Rheumatology in the Middle East in 2017: clinical challenges and research

• Main Authors: Abdulla Watad, Jamal Al-Saleh, Merav Lidar, Howard Amital, Yehuda Shoenfeld
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: BMC 2017-06-01
• Series: Arthritis Research & Therapy
• Subjects: Rheumatology; FMF; Behçet’s disease; ASIA syndrome; Israel; Middle East
• Online Access: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s13075-017-1359-0

Abstract The World Health Organization (WHO) has ranked musculoskeletal diseases among the top ten leading causes of disability in the Middle East. The situation in the Middle East is unique as, although seventeen countries are geographical connected, there is considerable variability in the standard of rheumatology care and research between the countries. There are several factors contributing to this variability: allocated government resources to healthcare services, country demographics, the implemented healthcare system, the number of qualified rheumatologist, political stability, and the immigration to and from these countries.