Division of Rheumatology

The Scripps Clinic Medical Group Division of Rheumatology is a large team of specialists focused on providing care for all types of autoimmune rheumatic syndromes and systemic vasculitis. We also offer expert diagnosis and treatment of non-autoimmune musculoskeletal conditions such as osteoarthritis, tendinitis, bursitis, myofascial pain and fibromyalgia. We aim to reduce pain and suffering and improve mobility and comfort for those whose quality of life has been affected by rheumatic conditions. Our team members have trained at various nationally-recognized centers of excellence, and contribute to the training of the next generation of specialists by serving as mentors in our rheumatology fellowship program, allowing trainees to witness firsthand our empathetic, evidence-based approach to caring for patients with rheumatic disease.

Peter Weis, MD (Division Head)
Kavitta Allem, MD
Monica Budianu, MD
Richard Keating, MD
Manisha Kumar, DO
Megan Lynch, DO
Edward Skol, MD
Nicole Tramontini, MD
Gary Williams, MD, PhD

Practice locations are as follows:

Scripps Clinic Torrey Pines
Richard Keating, MD
Nicole Tramontini, MD
Peter Weis, MD
Gary Williams, MD, PhD

Scripps Clinic Carmel Valley
Manisha Kumar, DO
Megan Lynch, DO

Scripps Clinic Encinitas
Nicole Tramontini, MD

Scripps Clinic Jefferson – Oceanside
Kavitta Allem, MD

Scripps Clinic La Jolla – Anderson Medical Pavilion
Kavitta Allem, MD

Scripps Clinic Mission Valley
Monica Budianu, MD

Scripps Clinic Rancho Bernardo
Monica Budianu, MD
Edward Skol, MD
Peter Weis, MD

Scripps Clinic Rancho San Diego
Manisha Kumar, DO
Megan Lynch, DO

Featured Services

  • Diagnosis of the following diseases:

      • Rheumatoid arthritis
      • Psoriatic arthritis
      • Ankylosing spondylitis
      • Reactive arthritis
      • Systemic lupus erythematosis
      • Sjogren’s syndrome
      • Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies
      • Systemic sclerosis
      • Mixed connective tissue disease
      • Bechet’s disease
      • Crystalline disease such as gout and pseudogout
      • Systemic vasculitis
      • Osteoarthritis
      • Tendinitis
      • Bursitis
      • Myofascial pain 
      • Fibromyalgia 

  • Diagnostic musculoskeletal ultrasound

  • A variety of joint, tendon, and bursa injections.

  • Ultrasound guided musculoskeletal injections for appropriate patients

Recognitions & Awards

  • Division members serve as UCSD medical teaching faculty

Our division has an ACGME accredited fellowship program in Rheumatology. Our fellows are physicians fully trained in internal medicine who are now doing a two year fellowship in rheumatology subspecialty training. All Division members are involved in the training and mentoring of these fellows, as well as Scripps Clinic residents training in internal medicine.

For more information or to apply, please visit the Graduate Medical Education page.

(2015 to present)

Bitar A, Thompson C, Tan C, Allem K, Khachatrian A, Weis P, Garg V. Coronary Artery Vasospasm and Cardiogenic Shock as the Initial Presentation for Eosinophilic Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis. Journal of Cardiology Cases 2015:12:001.

Cook KA, Lynch MT, Weis PJ, White AA. A 30 Year-Old Woman with Chronic Hives, Intermittent Fevers, and Joint Pain. Allergy and Asthma Proceedings. 2017:38:1-5.

Autoimmune Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Richard Keating, MD, Megan Lynch, DO and Monica Budianu, MD
MedLink Neurology [serial online] 2019
Available at: http://www.medlink.com/

Scleroderma
Kavitta Allem, MD and Richard Keating, MD
MedLink Neurology [serial online] 2019
Available at: http://www.medlink.com

Felty Syndrome
Medscape Drugs & Diseases.
Keating, RM
Updated: December 13, 2019
Available at: http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/329734-overview

Immunosuppressive Agents
Kavitta Allem, MD & Richard Keating, MD
Rheumatology, 7th ed
Hochberg MC, Gravallese EM, Silman AJ, Smolen JS, Weinblatt ME, & Weisman MH, eds.
2018

Anticyclic citrullinated peptid antibodies 3.1 and anti-CCP-IgA are associated with increasing age in individuals without rheumatoid arthritis. Berens HM, Polinski KJ, Mikuls TR, Khatter S, August J, Visser A, Mahler M, Weisman M, O’Dell JR, Keating RM, Buckner JH, Gregersen PK, Norris JM, Holers VM, Deane KD, Demoruelle MK.
J Rheumatol. 2019 Apr 15. pii: jrheum.180897. doi: 10.3899/jrheum.180897. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 30988128

Perceived stress and inflammatory arthritis: a prospective investigation in the Studies of the Etiologies of Rheumatoid Arthritis (SERA) cohort. Polinski KJ, Bemis EA, Feser M, Seifert J, Demoruelle MK, Striebich CC, Brake S, O’Dell JR, Mikuls TR, Weisman MH, Gregersen PK, Keating RM, Buckner J, Nicassio P, Holers VM, Deane KD, Norris JM.
Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2019 Oct 10. doi: 10.1002/acr.24085. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 31600025

Latent autoimmunity across disease-specific boundaries in at-risk first-degree relatives of SLE and RA patients. James JA, Chen H, Young KA, Bemis EA, Seifert J, Bourn RL, Deane KD, Demoruelle MK, Feser M, O’Dell JR, Weisman MH, Keating RM, Gaffney PM, Kelly JA, Langefeld CD, Harley JB, Robinson W, Hafler DA, O’Connor KC, Buckner J, Guthridge JM, Norris JM, Holers VM.
EBioMedicine. 2019 Apr;42:76-85. doi: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2019.03.063. Epub 2019 Apr 3
PMID: 3095261

A double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase II, randomized study of lovastatin therpay in the treatment of mildy active rheumatoid arthritis. Aranow C, Cush J, Bolster MB, Striebich CC, Dall’era M, Mackay M, Olech E, Frech T, Box J, Keating R, Wasko MC, St Clair W, Kivitz A, Huang W, Ricketts P, Welch B, Callahan S, Spychala M, Boyle K, York K, Keyes-Elstein L, Goldmuntz E, Diamond B, Davidson A.
Rheumatology (Oxford). 2019 Oct 18. pii: kez471. doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/kez471. [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 31628482

Scleroderma
Kavitta Allem, MD and Richard Keating, MD
MedLink Neurology [serial online] 2019
Available at: http://www.medlink.com

Immunosuppressive Agents
Kavitta Allem, MD & Richard Keating, MD
Rheumatology, 7th ed
Hochberg MC, Gravallese EM, Silman AJ, Smolen JS, Weinblatt ME, & Weisman MH, eds.
2018

Autoimmune Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Richard Keating, MD, Megan Lynch, DO and Monica Budianu, MD
MedLink Neurology [serial online] 2019
Available at: http://www.medlink.com/

Cook KA, Lynch MT, Weis PJ, White AA. A 30 Year-Old Woman with Chronic Hives, Intermittent Fevers, and Joint Pain. Allergy and Asthma Proceedings. 2017:38:1-5.

SEE ALL SCMG RESEARCH