Contact

• workRoom A24 Clinical Sciences Building
  Nottingham City Hospital
  Hucknall Road
  Nottingham
  NG5 1PB
  UK
• Abhishek.Abhishek@nottingham.ac.uk

Biography

Abhishek is a Professor of Rheumatology at the University of Nottingham, UK, and Honorary Consultant Rheumatologist at the Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, UK. He qualified in 1999 from Seth GS Medical College in Mumbai (India), and completed residency in internal medicine from NSCB Medical College in Jabalpur (India). After initial medical training posts in Rhyl, Cardiff and Liverpool, he joined the Rheumatology and General Medicine Specialist Registrar training programme in Nottingham, UK (2005-2013). Here he developed a clinical and research interest in crystal arthritis. He completed a PhD on Calcium Pyrophosphate Deposition (CPPD) in 2012. He completed higher specialist training in February 2013, gaining dual Certification in General Internal Medicine and Rheumatology. His higher specialist training was interspersed with post-doctoral clinical research fellowship experience at The University of Birmingham.

After completing his clinical and research training in January 2013, he took up a substantiative NHS Consultant Rheumatologist post in Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, UK, where he worked till August 2014. He moved back to the University of Nottingham in September 2014 when opportunity arose, to take up a Clinical Academic appointment as Clinical Associate Professor of Rheumatology, and pursue his research interests. He was promoted to full Professor in August 2020.

Apart from crystal arthritis, his other research interests include epidemiology of autoimmune rheumatic diseases, osteoarthritis, clinical trials and clinical effectiveness studies using big-data, and evidence-based medicine. He has published over ninety-five research articles and contributed over fifteen book chapters in the field of rheumatic diseases.

He is currently the co-PI of American College of Rheumatology/European League Against Rheumatism CPPD classification criteria project, and co-Chair of the OMERACT CPPD working group.

He has diverse research interests including epidemiology of rheumatic diseases, clinical studies in crystal arthritis, osteoarthritis and fibromyalgia. Over the last 4 years he has had research funding as a principal investigator to the tune of £5.4 million from Arthritis Research UK, National Institute of Health Research, Medical Research Council, Rosetrees Charitable Trust, AstraZeneca, Oxford Immunotech, Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust Charity, and the European League Against Rheumatism. He was previously the lead for musculoskeletal diseases and disability (MDD) module for undergraduate medical education at the University of Nottingham.

He is also the Founding co-convenor of British Society for Rheumatology Crystal Arthritis Special Interest Group, and on the editorial board of Rheumatology (Oxford). He is part of the European League Against Rheumatism Undergraduate School of Rheumatology and have given invited lectures at the British Society for Rheumatology, Gout crystal and hyperuricemia network (G-CAN), and European League Against Rheumatism annual meetings on several occasions.

He has supervised or co-supervised 10 PhD students to completion.

Expertise Summary

Diseases: Rheumatoid Arthritis, Crystal arthritis, Osteoarthritis, Pain

Methodologies: Clinical Trials (Pragmatic and Efficacy studies), Big Data Epidemiology (using Clinical Practice Research Datalink, UK Biobank), Systematic review, Classification criteria development, Outcome measure development, Ultrasound imaging,

Teaching Summary

Previous lead MDD Module Nov 2016 - May 2018

Lectures to medical students

Small group teaching in CP3

MSc and BMedSci/BScMPT students

Research Summary

Current research grants (Value, Dates (from-to), Funder)

• Influenza and pneumococcal vaccination in adults with common inflammatory conditions treated with immune suppressing drugs: a study of vaccine uptake, clinical effectiveness, vaccine safety, and facilitators and barriers to vaccination. (£149,948, July 2021 - Dec 2022, National Institute of Health Research).
• The development of risk-stratified, cost-effective, and acceptable blood-test monitoring strategies for inflammatory conditions treated with commonly used immune suppressing drugs: a multi-method study using evidence synthesis, modelling and qualitative research. (£413,069, Sept 2020 - Aug 2022, National Institute of Health Research).
• ACR/EULAR classification criteria for CPPD. ($130,000, July 2019 - June 2021 ACR/EULAR)
• Ultrasonography in Hyperuricaemia and Gout. (£20,000, Feb 2020-Feb 2022, British Council)
• A primary care-based cohort study evaluating the utility of indefinite regular monitoring blood tests in detecting asymptomatic toxicity from long-term methotrexate and leflunomide prescription. (£149,653, Dec 2019 - July 2021, National Institute of Health Research).
• What is the clinical and cost-effectiveness of using a goal-directed allopurinol-based treat-to- target protocol in people with recurrent gout attacks? (£1,584,590, Jan 2019 - July 2025, National Institute of Health Research).
• Beta blocker use, osteoarthritis pain and total joint replacement in the general population: a prospective cohort study using data from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink. (£145,541, Sept 2018-June 2020, National Institute of Health Research)
• Does increased expression of inflammatory genes influence gout onset and severity? (£21,516 , Oct 2017 - Mar 2021, Rosetrees Trust)
• Omega-3 fatty acids for the prophylaxis of acute attacks of gout on initiating urate lowering treatment - feasibility study for RCT. (£162,618, June 2017 - Dec 2020, Arthritis Research UK)
• Harnessing the potential of 17-HDHA a novel biomarker of OA pain status. (£394,952, July 2019 - June 2021, Arthritis Research UK)
• Developing a complex package of care for knee pain - package development and feasibility RCT. (£255,000, Nov 2016 - Oct 2021, National Institute of Health Research)

Current PhD students: Title of thesis (Research Methodology, Year Registration)

• Gene expression, polygenic risk score, and risk of gout (Gene expression, risk-prediction, 2017-2021*)
• Developing and evaluating the feasibility of a nurse led non-pharmacologic complex package of care for knee pain (Clinical Trial, qualitative research methods, systematic review, 2017-2021*)

• Morphological features associated with knee osteoarthritis (Imaging, Epidemiology, 2016-2020) - minor corrections

• Development of a non-pharmacological treatment package for fibromyalgia (Systematic review, meta-analysis, Delphi exercise, 2017-2021)

• Association between ultrasonographic assessed structural and inflammatory changes in hand osteoarthritis and hand function. (Systematic review, meta-analysis, imaging, 2018-2021)

• Safety of paracetamol and NSAIDs (Systematic review, epidemiology 2017-2021)

• Individualised exercise intervention for hip and knee osteoarthritis: A mixed method study (Systematic review, meta-analysis, Delphi, 2017-2021)

• Exercise intervention for patients with knee osteoarthritis (Clinical trial, 2018-2021).

Selected Publications

• ABHISHEK A and DOHERTY M, 2015. Understanding placebo effects in rheumatology. Joint, bone, spine. 82(4), 222-4
• ABHISHEK, A, DOHERTY, S, MACIEWICZ, R, MUIR, K, ZHANG, W and DOHERTY, M, 2014. Association between low cortical bone mineral density, soft-tissue calcification, vascular calcification and chondrocalcinosis: a case-control study. Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases: Ann Rheum Dis. 73, 1997-2002
• ABHISHEK A, DOHERTY S, MACIEWICZ R, MUIR K, ZHANG W, DOHERTY M and VALDES AM, 2014. The association between ANKH promoter polymorphism and chondrocalcinosis is independent of age and osteoarthritis: results of a case-control study. Arthritis research & therapy. 16(1), R25
• ABHISHEK A, 2014. Calcium pyrophosphate deposition. British journal of hospital medicine (London, England : 2005). 75(4), C61-4

• View all publications

Past Research

Completed Grant funded research:

• Effectiveness and uptake of the seasonal trivalent influenza vaccine in autoimmune inflammatory rheumatic disease patients (£99,973, Feb 2017-Nov 2018, Arthritis Research UK).
• Identifying patients at risk of frequent gout attacks- a prospective study (£19,530, July 2015 - Dec 2016, Oxford Immunotech)
• Prospective study of benefits of a nurse led package of care in gout (£11,133 , Dec 2015 - Nov 2017 Nottingham Hospitals Charity)
• Sons of gout study - Hour early in life does MSU crystal deposition actually begin? (£125,608, Dec 2015 - Nov 2017, AstraZeneca)
• The development of EULAR Hand OA classification study (EULAR)

Completed PhD Students:

The epidemiology and natural history of ANCA Associated vasculitis in the UK: a response to The UK Strategy for Rare Diseases Epidemiology (2015-2018).

• CHINCHILLA SP, DOHERTY M and ABHISHEK A, 2019. Gout Activity Score has predictive validity and is sensitive to change: results from the Nottingham Gout Treatment Trial (Phase II). Rheumatology (Oxford, England). (In Press.)
• WITTOEK R, KROON FPB, KUNDAKCI B, ABHISHEK A, HAUGEN IK, BERENBAUM F, CONAGHAN PG, ISHIMORI ML, SMEETS W, VAN DER HEIJDE D and KLOPPENBURG M, 2019. Report from the Hand Osteoarthritis Working Group at OMERACT 2018: Update on Core Instrument Set Development. The Journal of rheumatology. (In Press.)
• ABHISHEK, ABHISHEK, 2018. New urate-lowing therapies. Current opinion in rheumatology. 30(2), 177-182
• PEARCE FA, HUBBARD RB, GRAINGE MJ, WATTS RA, ABHISHEK A and LANYON PC, 2018. Can granulomatosis with polyangiitis be diagnosed earlier in primary care? A case-control study. QJM : monthly journal of the Association of Physicians. 111(1), 39-45
• PEARCE, FIONA A., LANYON, PETER C., WATTS, RICHARD A., GRAINGE, MATTHEW J., ABHISHEK, ABHISHEK and HUBBARD, RICHARD B., 2018. Novel insights into the aetiology of granulomatosis with polyangiitis—a case–control study using the Clinical Practice Research Datalink: Rheumatology Rheumatology. kex512-kex512
• LATIF Z and ABHISHEK A, 2018. Are Doctors the Best People to Manage Gout? Is There a Role for Nurses and Pharmacists? Current rheumatology reports. 20(3), 14
• JOANNE STOCKS, NICOLE K. Y. TANG, DAVID A WALSH, SOPHIE C. WARNER, HOLLIE L. HARVEY, WENDY JENKINS, ABHISHEK ABHISHEK and MICHAEL DOHERTY, 2018. Bidirectional association between disturbed sleep and neuropathic pain symptoms: a prospective cohort study in post-total joint replacement participants Journal of Pain Research. 11, 1087-1093
• ABHISHEK A, NEOGI T, CHOI H, DOHERTY M, ROSENTHAL AK and TERKELTAUB R, 2018. Unmet Needs and the Path Forward in Joint Disease Associated with Calcium Pyrophosphate Crystal Deposition. Arthritis & rheumatology (Hoboken, N.J.). (In Press.)
• FENTON SA, NEOGI T, DUNLOP D, NEVITT M, DOHERTY M, DUDA JL, KLOCKE R, ABHISHEK A, RUSHTON A, ZHANG W, LEWIS CE, TORNER J, KITAS G, WHITE DK and , 2018. Does the intensity of daily walking matter for protecting against the development of a slow gait speed in people with or at high risk of Knee Osteoarthritis? An observational study. Osteoarthritis and cartilage. (In Press.)
• NAKAFERO G, GRAINGE MJ, MYLES PR, MALLEN CD, ZHANG W, DOHERTY M, NGUYEN-VAN-TAM JS and ABHISHEK A, 2018. Predictors and temporal trend of flu vaccination in auto-immune rheumatic diseases in the UK: a nationwide prospective cohort study. Rheumatology (Oxford, England).
• ABHISHEK A, COURTNEY P, JENKINS W, SANDOVAL-PLATA G, JONES AC, ZHANG W and DOHERTY M, 2018. Monosodium urate crystal deposits are common in asymptomatic sons of people with gout - The Sons of gout study. Arthritis & rheumatology (Hoboken, N.J.). (In Press.)
• ABHISHEK A, NAKAFERO G, KUO CF, MALLEN C, ZHANG W, GRAINGE MJ and DOHERTY M, 2018. Rheumatoid arthritis and excess mortality: down but not out. A primary care cohort study using data from Clinical Practice Research Datalink. Rheumatology (Oxford, England). 57(6), 977-981
• ANEESA KAPADIA and A ABHISHEK, 2018. Inpatient rheumatology consultation for gout flares and advice to initiate urate lowering treatment (ULT) in hospital discharge summary increases ULT prescription in primary care. Joint Bone Spine. (In Press.)
• VALDES AM, RAVIPATI S, POUSINIS P, MENNI C, MANGINO M, ABHISHEK A, CHAPMAN V, BARRETT DA and DOHERTY M, 2018. Omega-6 oxylipins generated by soluble epoxide hydrolase are associated with knee osteoarthritis. Journal of lipid research. (In Press.)
• ROYLE JG, LANYON PC, GRAINGE MJ, ABHISHEK A and PEARCE FA, 2018. The incidence, prevalence, and survival of systemic sclerosis in the UK Clinical Practice Research Datalink. Clinical rheumatology. 37(8), 2103-2111
• ABHISHEK A, RODDY E and DOHERTY M, 2017. Gout - a guide for the general and acute physicians. Clinical medicine (London, England). 17(1), 54-59
• ABHISHEK A, JENKINS W, LA-CRETTE J, FERNANDES G and DOHERTY M, 2017. Long-term persistence and adherence on urate-lowering treatment can be maintained in primary care-5-year follow-up of a proof-of-concept study. Rheumatology (Oxford). 56(4), 529-533
• ABHISHEK A, DOHERTY M, KUO CF, MALLEN CD, ZHANG W and GRAINGE MJ, 2017. Rheumatoid arthritis is getting less frequent-results of a nationwide population-based cohort study. Rheumatology (Oxford). 56(5), 736-744
• LA-CRETTE J, JENKINS W, FERNANDES G, VALDES AM, DOHERTY M and ABHISHEK A, 2017. First validation of the gout activity score against gout impact scale in a primary care based gout cohort. Joint, bone, spine : revue du rhumatisme. (In Press.)
• ABHISHEK A and DOHERTY M, 2017. Incident gout and erectile dysfunction: is hyperuricaemia the elephant in the room? Arthritis research & therapy. 19(1), 184
• VALDES AM, RAVIPATI S, MENNI C, ABHISHEK A, METRUSTRY S, HARRIS J, NESSA A, WILLIAMS FMK, SPECTOR TD, DOHERTY M, CHAPMAN V and BARRETT DA, 2017. Association of the resolvin precursor 17-HDHA, but not D- or E- series resolvins, with heat pain sensitivity and osteoarthritis pain in humans. Scientific reports. 7(1), 10748
• ABHISHEK A, VALDES AM, JENKINS W, ZHANG W and DOHERTY M, 2017. Triggers of acute attacks of gout, does age of gout onset matter? A primary care based cross-sectional study. PloS one. 12(10), e0186096
• ABHISHEK A, 2017. Managing Gout Flares in the Elderly: Practical Considerations. Drugs & aging. 34(12), 873-880
• ABHISHEK A and DOHERTY M, 2017. Education and non-pharmacological approaches for gout. Rheumatology (Oxford, England). 57(suppl_1), i51-i58
• KANAVAKI AM, RUSHTON A, EFSTATHIOU N, ALRUSHUD A, KLOCKE R, ABHISHEK A and DUDA JL, 2017. Barriers and facilitators of physical activity in knee and hip osteoarthritis: a systematic review of qualitative evidence. BMJ open. 7(12), e017042
• ABHISHEK A, VALDES AM and DOHERTY M, 2016. Low omega-3 fatty acid levels associate with frequent gout attacks: a case control study. Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases. 75(4), 784-5
• ABHISHEK A, DOHERTY S, MACIEWICZ RA, MUIR K, ZHANG W and DOHERTY M, 2016. Does chondrocalcinosis associate with a distinct radiographic phenotype of osteoarthritis in knees and hips? A case-control study Arthritis Care & Research. 68(2), 211-6
• ABHISHEK A and DOHERTY M, 2016. Clinical features of Osteoarthritis UpToDate. (In Press.)
• ABHISHEK A, 2016. Calcium pyrophosphate deposition disease: a review of epidemiologic findings Current Opinion in Rheumatology. 28(2), 133-9
• ABHISHEK, A. and DOHERTY, M., 2016. Update on calcium pyrophosphate deposition CLINICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL RHEUMATOLOGY. 34(4), S32-S38
• ABHISHEK, ABHISHEK, CURRAN, DECLAN J., BILWANI, FAIZAN, JONES, ADRIAN C., TOWLER, MARK R. and DOHERTY, MICHAEL, 2016. In vivo detection of monosodium urate crystal deposits by Raman spectroscopy-a pilot study RHEUMATOLOGY. 55(2), 379-380
• KANAVAKI AM, RUSHTON A, KLOCKE R, ABHISHEK A and DUDA JL, 2016. Barriers and facilitators to physical activity in people with hip or knee osteoarthritis: protocol for a systematic review of qualitative evidence. BMJ open. 6(11), e012049
• EMINAGA F, LE-CARRATT J, JONES A and ABHISHEK A, 2016. Does the initiation of urate-lowering treatment during an acute gout attack prolong the current episode and precipitate recurrent attacks: a systematic literature review. Rheumatology international. (In Press.)
• VALDES AM, ABHISHEK A, MUIR K, ZHANG W, MACIEWICZ RA and DOHERTY M, 2016. Beta-blocker use associates with lower prevalence of joint pain and lower opioid requirement in people with osteoarthritis. Arthritis care & research. (In Press.)
• JIMENEZ-LIÑAN LM, EDWARDS L, ABHISHEK A and DOHERTY M, 2016. Online patient information resources on gout provide inadequate information and minimal emphasis on potentially curative urate lowering treatment. Arthritis care & research. (In Press.)
• VALDES AM, MANON-JENSEN T, ABHISHEK A, JENKINS W, SIEBUHR AS, KARSDAL MA, DOHERTY S, ZHANG W, RICHARDSON H, DOHERTY M and BAY-JENSEN AC, 2016. Intercritical circulating levels of neo-epitopes reflecting matrixmetalloprotease-driven degradation as markers of gout and frequent gout attacks. Rheumatology (Oxford, England). 55(9), 1642-6
• ABHISHEK A, VALDES AM, ZHANG W and DOHERTY M, 2016. Association of Serum Uric Acid and Disease Duration With Frequent Gout Attacks: A Case-Control Study. Arthritis care & research. 68(10), 1573-7
• ABHISHEK A and DOHERTY M, 2015. Understanding placebo effects in rheumatology. Joint, bone, spine. 82(4), 222-4
• ABHISHEK, ABHISHEK and DOHERTY, MICHAEL, 2015. Understanding placebo effects in rheumatology JOINT BONE SPINE. 82(4), 222-224
• ABHISHEK A, DOHERTY S, MACIEWICZ RA, MUIR K, ZHANG W and DOHERTY M, 2015. Does Chondrocalcinosis Associate With a Distinct Radiographic Phenotype of Osteoarthritis in Knees and Hips? A Case-Control Study. Arthritis care & research. 68(2), 211-6
• ABHISHEK, A, DOHERTY, S, MACIEWICZ, R, MUIR, K, ZHANG, W and DOHERTY, M, 2014. Association between low cortical bone mineral density, soft-tissue calcification, vascular calcification and chondrocalcinosis: a case-control study. Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases: Ann Rheum Dis. 73, 1997-2002
• ABHISHEK A, DOHERTY S, MACIEWICZ R, MUIR K, ZHANG W, DOHERTY M and VALDES AM, 2014. The association between ANKH promoter polymorphism and chondrocalcinosis is independent of age and osteoarthritis: results of a case-control study. Arthritis research & therapy. 16(1), R25
• ABHISHEK A, 2014. Calcium pyrophosphate deposition. British journal of hospital medicine (London, England : 2005). 75(4), C61-4
• ABHISHEK A and DOHERTY M, 2014. Epidemiology of calcium pyrophosphate crystal arthritis and basic calcium phosphate crystal arthropathy. Rheumatic diseases clinics of North America. 40(2), 177-91
• ABHISHEK A, DE PABLO P, CADER MZ, BUCKLEY CD, RAZA K and FILER A, 2014. Diagnostic outcomes associated with ankle synovitis in early inflammatory arthritis: a cohort study. Clinical and experimental rheumatology. 32(4), 533-8
• ABHISHEK A, DOHERTY S, MACIEWICZ R, MUIR K, ZHANG W and DOHERTY M, 2013. Evidence of a systemic predisposition to chondrocalcinosis and association between chondrocalcinosis and osteoarthritis at distant joints: a cross-sectional study. Arthritis care & research. 65(7), 1052-8
• ABHISHEK A and DOHERTY M, 2013. Mechanisms of the placebo response in pain in osteoarthritis. Osteoarthritis and cartilage. 21(9), 1229-35
• KRABBEN A, ABHISHEK A, BRITSEMMER K, FILER A, HUIZINGA TWJ, RAZA K, VAN SCHAARDENBURG D and VAN DER HELM-VAN MIL AHM, 2013. Risk of rheumatoid arthritis development in patients with unclassified arthritis according to the 2010 ACR/EULAR criteria for rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatology (Oxford, England). 52(7), 1265-70
• ABHISHEK A and DOHERTY M, 2013. Diagnosis and clinical presentation of osteoarthritis. Rheumatic diseases clinics of North America. 39(1), 45-66
• ABHISHEK A, DOHERTY S, MACIEWICZ R, MUIR K, ZHANG W and DOHERTY M, 2012. Chondrocalcinosis is common in the absence of knee involvement. Arthritis research & therapy. 14(5), R205
• ABHISHEK A, PANDE I and HUBBARD RB, 2011. Prescription Of Teriparatide In The Uk--A Nationwide Register Study From 2004 To 2008. Pharmacoepidemiology And Drug Safety. 20(12), 1327-33
• ABHISHEK A, YAZDANI R, PEARCE F, REGAN M, LIM K, HUBBARD R and LANYON P, 2011. Outcome Of Systemic Sclerosis Associated Interstitial Lung Disease Treated With Intravenous Cyclophosphamide. Clinical Rheumatology. 30(8), 1099-104
• ABHISHEK A and DOHERTY M, 2011. Pathophysiology of articular chondrocalcinosis--role of ANKH. Nature reviews. Rheumatology. 7(2), 96-104
• ABHISHEK A, DOHERTY S, MACIEWICZ RA, MUIR KR, ZHANG W and DOHERTY M, 2011. Self-reported knee malalignment in early adult life as an independent risk for knee chondrocalcinosis. Arthritis care & research. 63(11), 1550-7
• ABHISHEK, A., BUTT, S., GADSBY, K., ZHANG, W. and ET AL, 2010. Anti-TNF-alpha agents are less effective for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis in current smokers Journal of Clinical Rheumatology. 16(1), 15-18
• INGHAM SL, MOODY A, ABHISHEK A, DOHERTY SA, ZHANG W and DOHERTY M, 2010. Development and validation of self-reported line drawings for assessment of knee malalignment and foot rotation: a cross-sectional comparative study. BMC medical research methodology. 10, 57
• ABHISHEK A, RODDY E, ZHANG W and DOHERTY M, 2010. Are hallux valgus and big toe pain associated with impaired quality of life? A cross-sectional study. Osteoarthritis and cartilage / OARS, Osteoarthritis Research Society. 18(7), 923-6
• ABHISHEK A and PANDE I, 2009. Teriparatide in men: persistence and geographical variation in the UK. Osteoporosis international. 20(8), 1453-4