The Pakistan Society for Rheumatology is a pioneering platform which was formed in 1995, with a view to enhance the knowledge about rheumatic diseases in Pakistan and to encourage further development of expertise in this field. It took its roots from the Pakistan Rheumatic Society which was started in Karachi in 1970, by a group of leading doctors. These physicians were themselves not formally trained in this field but realized the responsibility of ensuring the inclusion of Pakistan’s name in international forums.

Even though initially the activities within Pakistan remained confined to sporadic meetings in Karachi itself, people like Dr S.R.A. Kirmani and Dr. Samad Shera kept the beacon of hope alive from and within Pakistan. It was in the early 1990’s that a small group of Rheumatologists who had trained in the UK and USA returned to Pakistan with the commitment to introduce advanced Rheumatology education and care. With the blessing of the old guard, the flame was passed on to the new generation and since then there has been no looking back.

The first set of office bearers included Dr. Azra Ali (President), Dr. Khurram Manzoor Chowdhry (President-elect), Dr. Abid Farooqi (General Secretary), Dr Kamran Hameed (Joint Secretary) and Dr. Shahid Abbas (Finance Secretary). These representatives succeeded in getting the credentials of the Society accepted internationally within a few months and the PSR was registered as the representative national society from Pakistan among the International League of Associations for Rheumatology (ILAR).

Annual scientific meetings have been organized in Islamabad, Karachi and Lahore with participation from internationally famous rheumatologists from abroad and the stage is set for producing respectable opinion leaders available within our own country. Within this short span of time a number of international publications of original scientific research have appeared in leading rheumatology journals and Pakistan’s name is beginning to be credible in the world of Rheumatology today.

This website will provide you with more details about PSR, its Board and members and its events and purpose.