Rheumatology in China from Its Beginning to Today

Chinese studies of rheumatic disease have made substantial achievements. From the early epidemiologic study of Sjögren’s syndrome to further characterization of the clinical phenotypes and immunologic profiles of the Chinese patients, to the GWAS study, clinical and translational research on Sjögren’s syndrome has made huge progress.^4,5

Registries generate patient benefit in the era of big data, such as the Chinese SLE Treatment and Research Group (CSTAR), a national registry of patient clinical data and blood biobank with 104 participating centers since its establishment in 2009.6 The Chinese Registry of Rheumatoid Arthritis (CREDIT) has also been established.⁷

A long-term clinical study of the Chinese traditional drug Tripterygium wilfordii Hook F in rheumatic disease and a recent randomized clinical trial show the herbal remedy is “not inferior to methotrexate,” and even better when employed in combination with methotrexate in controlling rheumatoid arthritis disease activity.⁸

Moving Forward

In the U.S., there are approximately 300 million people, and 5,500–6,000 full-time rheumatologists or providers; this means that there are 1.61–3.07 providers per 100,000 people.9 In China, there are 1.4 billion people and 8.61 million physicians, including 7,197 rheumatologists or rheumatology providers. It is estimated that China may have 0.2 billion patients with rheumatic diseases.

It is imperative to train more rheumatologists and physicians with a special interest in rheumatology to increase the Chinese rheumatology workforce. To provide high-quality care, the CRA has begun to develop national guidelines for the treatment and management of common rheumatic diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis and gout.

Xiaofeng Zeng, MD, is a professor of medicine and chief of the Department of Rheumatology and Immunology at Peking Union Medical College Hospital, and current president of the Chinese Rheumatology Association, Beijing, China.

Qingping Yao, MD, PhD, is a professor in the Department of Medicine and chief of the Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology, at Stony Brook University School of Medicine, Stony Brook, N.Y.

Acknowledgment

The authors thank Dr. Min Shen for her coordination and review of this article.

References

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