Rheumatology is defined as "a subspecialty of internal medicine concerned with the study of inflammatory or degenerative processes and metabolic derangement of connective tissue structures which pertain to a variety of musculoskeletal disorders, such as arthritis".[1]
Rheumatologists, like neurologists and certain other specialties, are often consulted for diffuse, complex diseases. Along with allergists, they are experts in clinical immunology.