UAB Division Director to Lead National Research Foundation

S. Louis Bridges Jr., MD, PhD sworn in as president of the Rheumatology Research Foundation

January 28, 2020

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ATLANTA - The Rheumatology Research Foundation (Foundation) has appointed S. Louis Bridges Jr., MD, PhD to serve as president for a two-year term. Dr. Bridges has served as the director of the University of Alabama-Birmingham (UAB) Division of Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology since 2009. He is also the director of the UAB Comprehensive Arthritis, Musculoskeletal, Bone, and Autoimmunity Center.

“I am delighted and honored to take on this role with the Foundation. I look forward to working with our many partners and stakeholders to further the Foundation’s mission of advancing rheumatology research and training to improve the health of patients with rheumatic disease,” said Dr. Bridges.

“In addition to addressing the impending workforce shortage in rheumatology, I look forward to developing innovative ways to support cutting-edge research in rheumatology as parts of the Foundation’s and the American College of Rheumatology’s (ACR) most recent strategic plans," he added. “For example, the ACR Rheumatology Informatics System for Effectiveness (RISE) registry is a great resource to advance impactful clinical research and has great potential as a research tool. I look forward to finding ways to collaborate and utilize this resource to its full potential.”

Dr. Bridges received a BS from the University of Notre Dame, and an MD from LSU School of Medicine. His research has been continuously funded by NIH grants and is focused largely on RA susceptibility, severity, and treatment response. He has authored more than 130 manuscripts, 20 book chapters, and served as editor of three editions of the text Vasculitis, published by Oxford University Press. He has been named to the Best Doctors in America list yearly since 2003 and is a former co-editor of Arthritis & Rheumatology and former chair of the NIH Arthritis, Musculoskeletal, and Skin Study Section. In addition to membership on several ACR committees, he previously served as chair of the ACR Committee on Research and as a member of the Foundation’s Scientific Advisory Council.