Abhijeet Danve, MBBS, MD, FACP, assistant professor of clinical medicine (rheumatology), was recently awarded the Jane Bruckel Early Career Investigator Award in Axial Spondyloarthritis (axSpA) from the Spondylitis Association of America (SAA).
Danve was chosen for the $20,000 award in support of his ‘exceptional body of work and ongoing research in axSpA,’ said the award letter.
axSpA is a systemic inflammatory rheumatic disease that primarily affects the spine and sacroiliac joints but can also involve joints of extremities and tendons. Ankylosing Spondylitis is late stage of axSpA. Some patients with axSpA develop psoriasis, uveitis or inflammatory bowel disease. Although effective therapies are available, axSpA is frequently missed or diagnosed late due to variety of reasons. Danve’s research is focused mainly on early diagnosis of axSpA which has been the unmet need of the field.
Danve joined faculty at Yale School of Medicine (YSM) in July 2015. Danve’s publications span clinical as well as translational aspects of spondyloarthritis. In addition to his research, he treats patients with autoimmune rheumatic diseases such as psoriatic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gout, lupus, and vasculitis. In fact, in 2018, Danve launched a comprehensive program at the Spine Center at Yale New Haven Hospital dedicated to patients with axSpA and ankylosing spondylitis.
“I am grateful to SAA for considering me for this prestigious award. It will definitely help in conducting high quality clinical research focused on early diagnosis of axSpA using clinical data and hopefully discover new biomarkers,” said Danve.
Danve is a decorated rheumatologist, winning the Distinguished Fellow Award from the American College of Rheumatology and joining the Fellowship of American College of Physicians, both in 2015. He is an invited member of the Spondyloarthritis Research and Treatment Network (SPARTAN) for the past four years and serves on the Registry subcommittee of SPARTAN. He also has served on American College of Rheumatology’s Gout guidelines committee. Danve is an active member of GRAPPA (Group for Research and Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis), American College of Physicians and American College of Rheumatology.
Per their website, the Spondylitis Association of America’s mission is to be a leader in the quest to cure ankylosing spondylitis and related diseases, and to empower those affected to live life to the fullest. Through this award, the Spondylitis Association of America hopes to encourage new, upcoming rheumatologists and researchers to focus on the future of treatment and research in ankylosing spondylitis and related diseases.
The Section of Rheumatology, Allergy & Immunology is one of the eleven sections within YSM’s Department of Internal Medicine. To learn more about their work, visit Rheumatology, Allergy & Immunology.