Joanna Tieu is a Rheumatologist based in Adelaide, SA, Australia. She helps people manage conditions where the immune system can cause ongoing inflammation, pain, and flare-ups. This can affect joints, skin, muscles, and sometimes the lungs too.
In her clinic, Joanna often sees patients with long-term joint problems like rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and other forms of arthritis. She also looks after people with different types of vasculitis, which is inflammation of blood vessels. That can show up in many ways, so treatment needs to be tailored and tracked over time.
Some patients she sees have tougher, less common inflammatory conditions such as polyarteritis nodosa, microscopic polyangiitis, granulomatosis with polyangiitis, and eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA, also known as Churg-Strauss syndrome). These cases can be complex, especially when symptoms change or overlap, so care often involves close follow-up and clear plans for what to watch for.
Joanna also works with people dealing with muscle inflammation (myositis) and lung involvement linked to immune disease, including interstitial lung disease. At times, patients may have episodes like acute interstitial pneumonia. She helps sort out what’s going on and make sure breathing and overall health are not missed in the process.
Because infections can sometimes look like, or sit alongside, inflammatory illness, she may also help manage infectious arthritis and serious infections such as Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia. In some situations, blood and immune counts can drop, like with agranulocytosis, and that needs careful attention.
Her work can also include looking after people with conditions like septic arthritis, where getting treatment quickly matters. She stays grounded and practical with families, especially when there are urgent or changing symptoms.
Alongside inflammatory and autoimmune issues, Joanna’s care approach can include health matters that come up in other parts of the body. For example, she may help with high blood pressure in infants. She can also support care for gestational diabetes as part of ongoing health planning.
