Certificate and grant for Orthopedics and Rheumatology
On Tuesday, June 27, ReumaNederland awarded the certificate 'Research Centre of Excellence' to the research of Orthopedics and Rheumatology of Maastricht UMC+ for their innovative research into joint preservation and personalized care in rheumatic diseases.
This recognition is a nice boost for the researchers of Orthopedics, who have been receiving grants for their research efforts since 2006. Orthopedics' long-term research program aims at joint preservation in cartilage damage and osteoarthritis and focuses on diagnostics and treatment. "We want to be able to predict whether the cartilage in a knee joint responds to treatment so that we can provide more targeted treatment in the future. In addition, we are investigating how to ensure that the cells in the knee joint can produce protein. Because we think that good and sufficient protein production plays a role in the health of the joint," said Tim Welting, Professor of Molecular Cartilage Biology and Department Chair of Orthopedics.
Rheumatology researchers are also very proud to receive the grant and the title "Research Centre of Excellence. Annelies Boonen, Professor of Rheumatology and head of the Rheumatology subdepartment explains, "The knowledge about causes and treatment options for rheumatic diseases has grown enormously. Yet still not all people with rheumatic diseases can participate in society the way they want to. In addition to disease characteristics, personal and environmental factors, also called contextual factors, of the patient play an important role in this. There is currently a lack of knowledge on how to include these contextual factors in the treatment of rheumatic diseases. Not taking these into account can lead to overtreatment but also undertreatment."
Tim: "We are honored that ReumaNederland recognizes our work with the designation 'Research Centre of Excellence' and provides us with a grant for the next five years. It is an incentive for us to think out of the box and continue researching groundbreaking solutions for joint preservation." Annelies can only agree: "Our research will contribute to better and more equal care for all our patients." "And that's what we do it for: making an impact together on the lives of people with orthopedic and rheumatic diseases," Annelies and Tim conclude.