ARAMIS: Arthritis, Rheumatism and Aging Medical Information Systems

BIO 59 Class

ARAMIS (the Arthritis, Rheumatism, and Aging Medical Information System) is a national chronic disease data bank system consisting of parallel, longitudinal, clinical data sets from 11 diverse U.S. and Canadian locations. Data describe the courses of thousands of patients with rheumatic diseases and healthy community residents followed for over 25 years. Unlike clinical studies based on medical records, ARAMIS data are collected with a prospective protocol using standard, defined data collection instruments. Instruments include the Health Assessment Questionnaire, an instrument which includes measures of disability, pain, global health, treatment side-effects, resource utilization, demographics and health behaviors.

ARAMIS has numerous associated investigators in the United States and Canada. Investigators and data banks are selected on the basis of integrity and attention to data collection and quality and breadth in the rheumatic diseases. This breadth results in diversity and strength in research. Data banks are also selected with regard to location and demographic composition. Some sites are part of academic medical centers, others are community providers located in urban centers, and others represent population based patient groups. ARAMIS investigators have published more than 800 articles in the field of rheumatology and health services research.

Contact Information

The ARAMIS database is managed by the Department of Immunology and Rheumatology, Stanford University Department of Medicine, Stanford, California. James F. Fries, M.D. is the Principal Investigator of ARAMIS. For more information, write ARAMIS, 1000 Welch Road, Suite 203, Palo Alto, CA 94304-5755 or email the webmaster.