Rheumatology
Lake Chelan Health Rheumatology provides evaluation and care for adults with confirmed or highly suspected rheumatologic conditions, including inflammatory arthritis, connective tissue diseases, and vasculitis.
Referrals
A referral from a primary care provider is typically required for a new rheumatology evaluation. This helps ensure that patients are appropriately evaluated and that rheumatology care is focused on conditions that benefit from specialized treatment.
Who Can Be Referred?
Rheumatology referrals are appropriate for:
- Adults age 18 and older
- Patients with a confirmed or highly suspected rheumatologic condition
- Conditions such as inflammatory arthritis, connective tissue diseases, and vasculitis
- Conditions Evaluated
Rheumatology conditions evaluated may include:
- Inflammatory Arthritis
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Psoriatic arthritis
- Ankylosing spondylitis
- IBD-associated arthritis
- Reactive arthritis
- Crystalline arthritis
Connective Tissue Diseases
- Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)
- Sjögren’s disease
- Scleroderma
- Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies
Vasculitis
- Giant cell arteritis
- Polymyalgia rheumatica
- ANCA-associated vasculitis
- Eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA)
- Polyarteritis nodosa (PAN)
- IgA vasculitis
- Takayasu’s arteritis
- Conditions Not Evaluated
Rheumatology does not typically evaluate:
- Fibromyalgia and other chronic pain syndromes
- Meochanical osteoarthritis conditions
- Hypermobility
- Primary osteoporosis
If you have questions about whether a condition may be appropriate for rheumatology evaluation, talk with your primary care provider about whether a referral is appropriate.
Providers
Patricia Papadopoulos
Patricia (“Trish”) Papadopoulos, MD, is a board-certified rheumatologist with nearly two decades of clinical experience. Originally from the Midwest, she earned her medical degree from Wayne State University School of Medicine, where she was elected to the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society.
Through the U.S. Army’s Health Professions Scholarship Program, Dr. Papadopoulos completed her Internal Medicine residency at Madigan Army Medical Center in Tacoma, Washington, followed by a fellowship in Rheumatology at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Washington, D.C. Following fellowship, she deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. She subsequently served as key clinical faculty at Walter Reed and later as Assistant Chief of Rheumatology at Madigan Army Medical Center.
After completing her Army obligation in 2013, Dr. Papadopoulos joined MultiCare Rheumatology Specialists in Tacoma, where she spent 12 years providing thorough care for patients across the full spectrum of rheumatologic conditions. In 2025, she and her family relocated to North Central Washington in pursuit of greater work-life balance and easy access to the outdoors.
Her clinical interests include inflammatory arthritis, connective tissue diseases, and vasculitis, with particular interests in ANCA-associated vasculitis and rheumatoid arthritis. She is committed to providing thoughtful, comprehensive, and patient-centered rheumatologic care.
Outside of medicine, Dr. Papadopoulos enjoys hiking, Nordic skiing, reading, baking, and spending time with her family, including her husband, two children, and three dogs.