“Rheumatology”
Specialty – 31.05.01 General Medicine
The total labor output of the discipline is 2 credits, 72 hours. 

The goal of mastering the discipline “Rheumatology” is to learn the principles and methods of differential diagnosis and treatment of the main syndromes of rheumatic diseases, to form the necessary knowledge and practical skills among students, to consolidate and improve the skills in examining a rheumatological patient in a hospital environment, to form the principles of clinical thinking (an ability to collect information about a patient to give a detailed clinical diagnosis), to learn differential diagnostic methods, to consolidate and expand the scope of skills in interpeting the most common instrumental laboratory examination methods for rheumatological patients; to learn the basic principles of rheumatological disease recognition. The objectives of the discipline is to study the epidemiology of the pathogenesis of major rheumatological diseases; symptoms characterizing the course and determining the possibilities of diagnosing rheumatological diseases using modern instrumental and laboratory methods; rheumatological syndrome complexes being the foundation of the differential diagnostics of individual nosologies; the basic principles of pharmacotherapy of connective tissue diseases in accordance with domestic standards and treatment protocols for these categories of patients.

The subject’s place in the specialist MPEP’s structure:
The discipline "Rheumatology" refers to the variable part of block C1 of the discipline that forms the basis of clinical thinking of a future specialist. The discipline is based on the knowledge gained in the study of humanitarian, natural-scientific, medical-preventive and general clinical disciplines (bioethics, Latin, biology, biochemistry, normal and morbid anatomy and human physiology, histology, microbiology, hygiene, pharmacology, propaedeutics of internal diseases, faculty therapy, occupational diseases, hospital therapy, endocrinology, etc.). The main provisions of the discipline should be used in the further study of the following disciplines: "Clinical therapy", "Clinical pharmacology, "Hospital therapy, endocrinology ", etc. Competences acquired during the study of the discipline "Rheumatology" prepare the student for mastering other professional competences.
The process of studying the discipline is aimed at the formation of the following competences:

• the ability and readiness to collect and analyze patients’ complaints, their medical history, examination results, laboratory, instrumental, pathological, anatomical and other examinations in order to recognize the condition or establish the presence or absence of a disease (SPC-5);
• the ability to determine the main pathological conditions, symptoms and syndromes of diseases, nosological forms in patients in accordance with the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th revision (SPC-6); 
• the ability and readiness to determine the tactics of managing patients with various nosological forms (SPC-8).

On the basis of the acquired knowledge, students obtain the abilities to collect an anamnesis, to conduct a physical examination (examination, palpation, percussion, determining the characteristics of the pulse, BR, measuring blood pressure), to interpret the results of examinations, to give a preliminary and clinical diagnosis, to outline the scope of additional examinations to clarify a diagnosis, to write a medical history; to apply algorithms for diagnosing various diseases and outlining the scope of additional examinations to clarify a diagnosis, to perform basic diagnostic measures to identify the most common diseases, urgent and life-threatening conditions; to apply the algorithms for treating various diseases, to develop an individual management and treatment plan taking into account the course of a disease, to formulate indications for the chosen treatment method taking into account etiology and pathogenesis, to substantiate pharmacotherapy for a particular patient with major pathological syndromes and emergency conditions, to write out prescriptions. Students develop the skills in analyzing the results of clinical, laboratory and instrumental methods of examining patients; giving preliminary and clinical diagnoses, choosing treatment based on the results of laboratory and instrumental examinations of adults and adolescents. 

Types of educational work: practical classes, unsupervised work. The study of the discipline ends with a pass-fail test.

Subject syllabus