Specialist in internal medicine and rheumatology
Specialist care
| 1989 - 1996 | Medical studies at the Ruprecht-Karls-University Heidelberg, completed with the German state examination and the US medical licensing examination (USMLE Step 1 and 2) |
| 1993 | Clinical clerkship in the Department of Rheumatology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA |
| 1996-2004 | Specialist training at the Medizinische Poliklinik and rheumatology unit (Prof. Schattenkirchner) of the Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich (director: Prof. Schlöndorff) |
| 2004 | Specialist in internal medicine |
| 2004-2005 | Parental leave |
| 2005-2014 | Research and clinical work at the Department of Internal Medicine I, Regensburg University Hospital, Prof. Schölmerich and Prof. Müller-Schilling |
| 2007 | Subspecialty certification in rheumatology |
| 2008-2014 | Senior physician, Department of Internal Medicine I |
| 2009 | Senior physician, Department of Rheumatology/Clinical Immunology, Prof. Fleck, Asklepios Klinikum Bad Abbach, a cooperating hospital of Regensburg University Hospital |
| 2011-2014 | Head of the clinical study centre of the Department of Internal Medicine I, Regensburg University Hospital |
| since 2015 | In practice as a specialist in internal medicine and rheumatology |
Academic career
| 1992-1993 | Research stay at the Rheumatology Research Unit of the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA |
| 1992-1996 | Doctorate at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Heidelberg, supervised by Prof. Goronzy and Prof. Weyand |
| 1996-2004 | Postdoctoral researcher in the research laboratory of the Medizinische Poliklinik (head: Prof. Dr. D. Schlöndorff) |
| 2006 | Habilitation in internal medicine |
| 2007 | Venia legendi (teaching qualification) in internal medicine |
| 2017 | Adjunct professor (apl. Professor), University of Regensburg |
Areas of activity
My main focus is the diagnosis and treatment of rheumatic diseases, which include inflammatory joint diseases as well as inflammatory connective tissue and vascular diseases. Autoimmune systemic diseases and immunodeficiencies also require careful and thorough diagnostics in order to find suitable treatment tailored to each patient.
In some cases, in addition to conventional basic therapies, treatment of rheumatic diseases may require biologics or JAK inhibitors. Great progress has been made in the treatment of many rheumatic diseases in recent years. To choose suitable medicines, it is essential to carry out a thorough clinical examination of the musculoskeletal system and of any internal organs that may be affected. All necessary examinations, including immunological blood tests and autoantibody tests, can be carried out at the Gemeinschaftspraxis am Rennplatz.
In addition to my clinical work, I teach medical students as a lecturer in internal medicine and rheumatology at Regensburg University Hospital.
Inflammatory joint diseases
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Psoriatic arthritis
- Spondyloarthritis (e.g. ankylosing spondylitis)
- Reactive arthritis and Lyme disease
- Crystal arthropathies (e.g. gout)
Inflammatory connective tissue and vascular diseases
- Connective tissue diseases including scleroderma / investigation of Raynaud’s syndrome, myositis
- Systemic lupus erythematosus
- Vasculitis (including ANCA-associated vasculitis, temporal arteritis, polymyalgia, Behçet’s disease)
Other autoimmune diseases and immunodeficiencies
- Sarcoidosis
- Autoinflammatory syndromes (e.g. adult-onset Still’s disease, familial Mediterranean fever)
- CVID (common variable immunodeficiency)
Professional societies and research
Membership of professional societies
German Society for Rheumatology (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Rheumatologie)
Rheumatology physicians’ network of southern Bavaria
Reviewer for the journal Rheumatology (Oxford Academic, British Society for Rheumatology)
Scholarships/awards
1992 - 1993 DAAD scholarship for a research stay at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, USA
1993 Student Achievement Award for Experimental Research (American College of Rheumatology)
2005 2006 Habilitation scholarship of the University of Regensburg
2006 - 2007 Scholarship for outstanding young researchers of the University of Regensburg
Research funding
1999 - 2000 Programme for research and teaching of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Munich
2001-2014 Continuous funding by the German Research Foundation (DFG)