Division of Rheumatology
University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine
Arthritis and Autoimmune Disease: Research, Education, and Patient Care

The Division of Rheumatology has been headed by V. Michael Holers, MD since 2000, and has continued to develop successful programs in basic, clinical and health services research as well as rheumatology education and patient care.

Faculty in the Division work at several affiliated institutions including the main campus at the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine (UCDSOM) and the University of Colorado Hospital (UCH) as well as at the Denver Veterans Administration Medical Center (VAMC), Denver Health Medical Center (DHMC), National Jewish Medical and Research Center (NJMRC), and the The Children’s Hospital (TCH) of Denver. UCH and THC have both recently moved to newly constructed facilities at the Anschutz Medical Campus, and a new VAMC is scheduled to be built on the same site by 2012.  By 2008 all other departments and programs of the Health Sciences Center will have moved to the Anschutz Medical Campus, thus finally consolidating activities that have been spread throughout the Denver region for many decades.

Division faculty. Back row, left to right:Chris Striebich, Michael Holers, Bill Arend, Walter Briney, Kevin Deane, Bob Janson, Dennis Boyle, Sterling West, Susan Boackle. Middle row, left to right: Linda Rodamaker, Alison Gizinski, Steven Murphy, Aryeh Fischer, Julia Rhiannon, Duane Pearson, Liron Caplan, Roger Hollister. Front row, left to right: Lezlie Rose, Melody Knauf, David Collier

Divisional Activities

Research groups in the Division are headed by Dr. Holers, as well as William (Bill) Arend, MD, Susan Boackle, MD, Kevin Deane, MD, and Liron Caplan, MD, with Christopher (Chris) Striebich, MD/PhD heading our clinical trials section. The Division continues to be well-funded from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Alliance for Lupus Research, Lupus Research Institute, Sandler Foundation, Arthritis Foundation, and industry.

Dr. Holers’ laboratory is focused on two general areas of interest. First, he is exploring the role of the complement system in normal immune and autoimmune responses. For example, his lab is investigating the role of the alternative pathway of complement during the development of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and other inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. In addition, Dr. Holers is working to define the role of autoantibodies and the evolution of autoimmunity in the pre-clinical stage of RA.  Dr. Holers is also the PI of the NIH-funded Denver Autoimmunity Center of Excellence (ACE), the co-founder of SERA (Studies of the Etiology of Rheumatoid Arthritis) and is a key participant in the NIH-funded Denver Autoimmunity Prevention Center, which is exploring the contributions of genetics and environmental exposures in the development of autoimmune disease.

Dr. Arend’s laboratory discovered the interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1Ra) and participated in the purification, cloning and expression of this natural anti-inflammatory protein. IL-1Ra has received FDA approval for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and is finding increased use in other systemic inflammatory disorders.

Dr. Boackle is interested in the pathogenesis of autoimmune disease, and has specifically focused on genes that may be involved in the development of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).  Through the identification of these genes, she hopes to develop novel treatments with better efficacy and less toxicity than those currently available.  Her lab is also working to identify biomarkers that serve as surrogate markers for lupus disease activity to guide the treatment of individuals with SLE.

Sterling West, MD is involved with research into the central nervous system manifestations of SLE and the pathogenesis of neuropsychiatric SLE, as well as multiple other clinical research projects. Dr. West also heads the fellowship program, and has won numerous national awards for his educational activities.

David Collier, MD is Chief of Rheumatology at Denver Health and Hospital Authority. He is also director of the Scleroderma Clinic at the University of Colorado Hospital, and works with Dr. Janson as co-director of the Division of Rheumatology's medical student education program.

Robert Janson, MD is currently Chief of Rheumatology at the Denver Veterans Affairs Hospital. He is also coordinator of the Internal Medicine Residency's Rheumatology rotation. In addition, he serves as co-director of the Division's medical student education coursework.

Dennis Boyle, MD serves as faculty at the Denver Health Medical Center. In addition to rheumatology, Dr. Boyle has special interests in doctor/patient communication and malpractice issues. He is also involved with medical student education through the School of Medicine's Foundations of Doctoring program.

Walter Briney, MD currently is involved in clinical education of fellows at the Rheumatology clinics at both the University of Colorado Hospital and Denver Health. He has special interest in the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of metabolic bone disease. In addition, Dr. Briney provides Rheumatologic care for the Native American community in the Four Corners region of Colorado.

As part of a collaborative effort with the Department of Preventive Medicine and Biometrics, Kevin Deane, MD is evaluating the role of genetics and environmental exposures on the development of rheumatoid arthrtis-related autoimmunity.

Efforts in health services research are being headed by Liron Caplan, MD. His major interest is in pharmacoepidemiology and he has focused in the areas of RA and autoimmune pulmonary disease as well as the potential toxicity of RA therapy. Along with David Collier, he is developing a longitudinal scleroderma database.

National Jewish Medical and Research Center

National Jewish Medical and Research Center (NJMRC) is one of the premier respiratory clinical and research facilities in the world. Richard Meehan, MD is the co-director of the Autoimmune Lung Center at NJMRC which specializes in the diagnostic evaluation and management of pulmonary manifestations of connective tissue disorders including lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, scleroderma, Sjogren's syndrome, and myositis. In addition, the Rheumatology Clinics at NJMRC specialize in the rheumatic manifestations of sarcoidosis and clinical trials using novel therapies and biologic response modifiers for systemic connective tissue diseases. Aryeh Fischer, MD, a faculty member of the Autoimmune Lung Center, has particular clinical and research interests in scleroderma-related lung disease and partners with Dr. David Collier in a collaborative Scleroderma Clinic at UCH and NJMRC.  JoAnn Zell Gillis, MD has recently joined the faculty of Rheumatology at NJMRC and has clinical and research interests in systemic lupus and bone metabolic disorders such as osteoporosis.

The Children's Hospital

Roger Hollister, MD

Jennifer Soep, MD

Leonard Dragone, MD, PhD

Educational Activities

Fellowship

The fellowship training program continues to be headed by Dr. West, who is also a member of the Rheumatology Curriculum Committee for the American Board of Internal Medicine and a recipient of the American College of Rheumatology's Clinician Educator Award. The Division continues to receive many applications for clinical and research training, the latter aided by a NIH Training Grant that we have held continuously for 18 years, and which was recently renewed for another 5 years. For more information on the fellowship program, click here.

Medical Students and Residents

Educational activities for medical students and residents are coordinated by Dr. Collier and Dr. Janson, and both individuals have received awards for their work. In addition, Dr. Boyle teaches communications skills to medical students as part of the University of Colorado School of Medicine Foundations of Doctoring program.

Patient Care

The extensive patient care activities of the Division are under the direction of Dr. Arend at University of Colorado Hospital, Dr. Janson at the VA Medical Center, Dr. Collier at the Denver Health Medical Center, Dr. Hollister at The Children’s Hospital, and Dr. Meehan at the National Jewish Medical Center. The Division sponsors specialty clinics at the University of Colorado Hospital for patients with scleroderma, SLE, and RA. In addition, Drs. Meehan and Fischer, who operate at the National Jewish Medical Center, specialize in pulmonary manifestations of autoimmune disease. The Division of Rheumatology was included in the list of top 25 Rheumatology Centers in the 2005 U.S. News and World Report survey of medical care in America.

(This site is currently being updated [December 2007]. Please contact Kevin Deane at Kevin.Deane@UCHSC.edu with questions.)