Health Matters: Arthritis, Not Just Age Related Pains--What You Should Know

Published May 12, 2026 at 5:14 PM CDT

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Samina Hayat, MD - Professor, Division Chief of Rheumatology at LSU Health Shreveport, Director of the Center of Excellence for Arthritis and Rheumatology

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Sarwat Umer, MD - Professor of Internal Medicine, Division of Internal Medicine-Pediatrics. She also serves as the Program Director for the Rheumatology Fellowship at LSU Health Shreveport

Thursday, May 14, 2026, at 6 p.m. May is National Arthritis Awareness Month. More than 100 diseases and conditions fall under the umbrella of arthritis, which remains the leading cause of disability in America, impacting millions of lives every day. Many people think of arthritis as a condition affecting older adults, but nearly 300,000 children in the U.S. are living with juvenile arthritis. On this episode of Health Matters, we will learn about risk factors and symptoms of arthritis, what we can do to limit its effects, and the latest treatments and research.

Health Matters host Dr. Randall Brewer will be joined by Dr. Samina Hayat, Professor, Division Chief of Rheumatology at LSU Health Shreveport, Director of the Center of Excellence for Arthritis and Rheumatology (CEAR); and Dr. Sarwat Umer, Professor of Internal Medicine, Division of Internal Medicine-Pediatrics, and Program Director for the Rheumatology Fellowship at LSU Health Shreveport.

We will also learn more about CEAR and how it assists patients from throughout the region of North Louisiana, East Texas, South Arkansas, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Tennessee.