Rheumatology & Autoimmune Diseases Centre

The Rheumatology & Autoimmune Diseases Centre at SilverOak Health provides specialist assessment and management of inflammatory arthropathies, systemic autoimmune diseases, crystal arthropathies, and musculoskeletal conditions. Our consultant rheumatologists bring deep expertise in the rapidly evolving landscape of biologic and targeted synthetic disease-modifying therapies, delivering care that achieves disease remission and prevents the irreversible joint damage and organ involvement that characterise undertreated inflammatory disease.

Early and accurate diagnosis is the cornerstone of effective rheumatological care — our rapid access clinic provides urgent assessment within two weeks for suspected new inflammatory arthritis, ensuring treatment is initiated before irreversible joint damage accrues. Conditions managed include rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis and non-radiographic axial spondyloarthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, Sjögren's syndrome, inflammatory myositis, systemic sclerosis, ANCA-associated vasculitis, giant cell arteritis, polymyalgia rheumatica, antiphospholipid syndrome, gout, pseudogout, and reactive arthritis.

Treatment protocols follow EULAR and NICE recommendations, utilising conventional DMARDs — methotrexate, hydroxychloroquine, leflunomide, and sulfasalazine — as first-line therapy. For patients with inadequate responses, biologic DMARDs — anti-TNF agents, anti-IL-6 (tocilizumab, sarilumab), anti-IL-17 (secukinumab, ixekizumab), anti-IL-23 (guselkumab, risankizumab), rituximab, and abatacept — and targeted synthetic DMARDs including JAK inhibitors (baricitinib, upadacitinib, filgotinib) are offered according to disease type and comorbidity profile.

Our biologic therapy clinic monitors treatment safety and efficacy with systematic recording of disease activity scores, patient-reported outcome measures, laboratory parameters, and infection surveillance. Specialist rheumatology nurses provide education, injection training, telephone support between appointments, and proactive monitoring to maximise medication adherence and early identification of adverse effects. Musculoskeletal ultrasound — used for assessment of joint and soft tissue inflammation and for guided injection of joints, tendons, and bursae — is performed in clinic by our trained rheumatologists.

Multidisciplinary management with physiotherapy, occupational therapy, podiatry, and psychology is integral to our rheumatology programme, addressing the functional, work-related, and psychological consequences of chronic inflammatory disease. Bone densitometry and fracture risk assessment with FRAX guide osteoporosis prevention and treatment in patients receiving glucocorticoids or at elevated risk. Our specialist connective tissue disease service — managing lupus, scleroderma, myositis, and vasculitis — collaborates with nephrology, respiratory medicine, cardiology, and dermatology for the multisystem complications of these complex conditions.