Welcome to RheumMadness – the place for everyone who is crazy about rheumatology to connect, collaborate, compete, and learn together. RheumMadness is a FREE educational tournament for everyone who is crazy about rheumatology. The project is funded by a Clinician Scholar Educator Award from the Rheumatology Research Foundation and inspired by a similar project in nephrology called NephMadness.

In RheumMadness, rheumatology learning concepts compete against each other in a tournament, much like basketball teams in the NCAA March Madness tournament. Participants (THAT’S YOU) learn about the teams by reading scouting reports written by 90 rheumatology trainees and attendings from all around the world. Then, you fill out your own bracket to predict which team you think will win the tournament. Your picks are matched up against those of a blue ribbon panel of rheumatology experts (read more about them below). The more your picks match those of the panel, the more points you get, and the participants with the most correct predictions will be crowned the winners of RheumMadness!

Prizes will be given to participants with the top scores in the following categories: (1) Attending / APP, (2) Fellow, and (3) Resident / Medical Student. The prize is a custom RheumMadness coffee mug and a lifetime of bragging rights.

In summary, here’s how to play:

1. Read the scouting reports to learn about each team in the tournament.
2. Submit your picks before March 20, 2024 at 11:59pm ET.
3. Enjoy the tournament! The tournament results will be released in 4 rounds from March 21 through March 28, 2024.

First time playing? Check out this quick “explainer video” for more information.

 

RheumMadness 2024: Practically Perfect

The theme for RheumMadness 2024 is “Practically Perfect.”  Each team in the tournament is based on a recent article vying to be named “the most practically useful article in the tournament.” These aren’t just your run-of-the-mill reads; they’re the ones you’ll want to keep handy in your back pocket for real-world applications in clinical practice.

The teams in this year’s tournament were proposed by groups of rheumatology trainees and attendings from all around the world.  These groups also wrote “scouting reports” reviewing the learning points of their article so participants can learn why each team might win the tournament.  In total, 90 people collaborated to create the scouting reports (54 fellows, 26 attendings, 5 residents, and 5 medical students).  They are amazing learning resources, and we hope you enjoy them!

***NEW THIS YEAR*** In the spirit of keeping things practical, we asked the scouting report authors to create visual aids that will help you apply the lessons from their article in practice. Feel free to print them out, tape them up in your office, post them in your work rooms, etc.

Below, we have listed all of the scouting reports reviewing the teams in the 2024 tournament. After reviewing the scouting reports, head over to the tournament website and submit your picks.

Use the links below to access each scouting report

• Precision OA, by the University of North Carolina Fellowship Program
• ADIRA, by the Allegheny Health Network Fellowship Program
• COVID Vax Guide, by the Ohio State Fellowship Program
• VITAL, by the RheumMadness Leadership Team
• GCA Score, by the University of Chicago Fellowship Program
• LLDAS, by the University of Manchester Fellowship Program
• ARCTIC REWIND, by the University of California San Diego Fellowship Program
• EMBRACE, by the Northwestern Fellowship Program
• PRODERM, by the Medical College of Wisconsin Fellowship Program
• INBUILD, by the Ochsner Rheumatology Fellowship Program
• SAPHYR, by the Medical University of South Carolina Fellowship Program
• Comparing ULT, by the University of Michigan Fellowship Program
• NORD-STAR, by the Vanderbilt Rheumatology Fellowship Program
• RA-ILD Review, by the University of South Florida Rheumatology Fellowship
• MTX Myths, by the Duke University Fellowship Program
• ORAL Surveillance, by The EMEUNET Group

 

RheumMadness on theMednet.org!

The RheumMadness team is excited to announce continued collaboration with theMednet.org for our 2024 tournament.  theMednet is a physician only site providing a space for physicians to tackle difficult clinical questions and see how colleagues are practicing. theMednet will be featuring select Q&A relevant to articles in our 2024 tournament and will provide a space for further discussion and polling around clinical application. Register here for a free account with full access to the site and RheumMadness content!

 

Other ways to connect with RheumMadness

1. Join the conversation on X, formerly known as Twitter using #RheumMadness.
2. Subscribe to the RheumMadness newsletter.

[wysija_form id=”1″]

 

The 2024 Blue Ribbon Panel

This panel of distinguished rheumatologists will vote to determine which teams advance in the tournament.  The more your predictions match those of the panel, the more points you will get in the tournament!  Learn more about our panelists below.

• Sarah Bayefsky, MD, is a combined adult and pediatrics rheumatology fellow at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania. Follow on X at @SarahBayefskyMD.
• David Bulbin, DO, is a rheumatologist at Geisinger in Pennsylvania, where he also serves as Program Director of the Geisinger Adult Rheumatology Fellowship Program. Follow on X at @NeonFloRheum.
• Noelle A. Rolle, MBBS, is Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Medical College of Georgia, where she also serves as Associate Program Director of the MCG Adult Rheumatology Fellowship Program. Follow on X at @noellealicia242.
• Didem Saygin, MD, is Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh, where she specializes in inflammatory myopathies. Dr. Saygin was a founding member of the RheumMadness leadership team in 2021. Follow on X at @DidemSayginMD.
• Rachel Tate, DO, is a rheumatologist practicing in Palm Beach, Florida. In March 2024, she will transition to a new role as an Autoimmune Disease Medical Director for Novartis. Follow on X at @uptoTate.
• Donald Thomas, Jr., MD, FACP, FACR, RhMSUS, is a rheumatologist at Arthritis and Pain Associates of PG County, MD. He is author of the Lupus Encyclopedia. Follow on X at @lupuscyclopedia.
• Kenneth Warrington, MD, is Professor of Medicine and Chair of the Division of Rheumatology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. Follow on X at @MdWarrington.

 

Who Makes RheumMadness?

Our leadership team is comprised of attendings, fellows, residents, and medical students from multiple different institutions.

Faculty Leadership

• David Leverenz, MD, MEd is the creator and director of RheumMadness.  He is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Duke University School of Medicine, Department of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology and Immunology.
• Akrithi Udupa Garren, MD is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Medstar / Georgetown Washington Hospital Center.
• Guy Katz, MD is an Instructor in Medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital.
• Iman Qaiser, MD is a a rheumatologist at Choctaw Nation
• Lisa Criscione-Schreiber, MD, MEd is an advisor and mentor for RheumMadness. She is a Professor of Medicine at Duke University School of Medicine, Department of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology and Immunology.
• Matthew Sparks, MD is the creator of NephMadness and serves an advisor and mentor for RheumMadness. He is an Associate Professor of Medicine at Duke University School of Medicine, Department of Medicine, Division of Nephrology.

Fellow Leaders

• Laura Arneson, MD is a rheumatology fellow at Northwestern
• Lauren He, MD is a rheumatology fellow at the University of Michigan.
• Ben Kellogg, MD is a rheumatology fellow at Duke University.
• Michael Macklin, MD is a rheumatology fellow at the University of Chicago.

Resident Leaders

• Meridith Balbach, MD is an internal medicine resident at Vanderbilt University Medical Center.
• Amanda Rodriguez, DO is an internal medicine resident at Lankenau Medical Center
• Sabahat Usmani, MD is a chief resident at Weiss Memorial Hospital in Chicago
• Eric Wilson, MD is an internal medicine resident at Duke University

Medical Student Leaders

• Courtney Bair is a medical student at Duke University School of Medicine.
• Ben Lueck is a medical student at Duke University School of medicine.