Rheumatology Research Projects

Rheumatology Fellowship Program at Jersey City Medical Center

Faculty Research

Original research articles

  1. Pulmonary Hypertension in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus among Black and Hispanic Patients: A Retrospective Longitudinal Cohort Study.
    King M, Martinez A, Abbruzzese, S, Fazzari M, Ameer A, Marian V, Savel R, Khawaja M. ACR open rheumatology. Submitted 8/2025
  2. Group-Based Medical Mistrust and Logistical Factors Influencing Rheumatology Clinical Trial Enrollment: A Single-Center Cross-Sectional Survey.
    Martinez A; Arias Diaz D; King M, ; Cheema A; Wang S, Marian V,; Savel R,; Khawaja M. ACR open rheumatology. Submitted 8/2025
  3. Loss of antiphospholipid antibody positivity post-thrombosis in SLE.
    Khawaja M, Magder L, Goldman D, Petri MA. Lupus Sci Med. 2020 Oct;7(1):e000423. doi: 10.1136/lupus-2020-000423. PMID: 33023978 Free PMC article.
  4. Routine Assessment of Patient Index Data 3 and the American College of Rheumatology/European League Against Rheumatism Provisional Remission Definitions as Predictors of Radiographic Outcome in a Rheumatoid Arthritis Clinical Trial With Tocilizumab. Khawaja MN, Bergman MJ, Yourish J, Pei J, Reiss W, Keystone E. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2017 May;69(5):609-615. doi: 10.1002/acr.23008. Epub 2017 Apr 7. PMID: 27564431
  5. Evaluation of Immune Response and Disease Status in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Patients Following SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination.
    Izmirly PM, Kim MY, Samanovic M, Fernandez-Ruiz R, Ohana S, Deonaraine KK, Engel AJ, Masson M, Xie X, Cornelius AR, Herati RS, Haberman RH, Scher JU, Guttmann A, Blank RB, Plotz B, Haj-Ali M, Banbury B, Stream S, Hasan G, Ho G, Rackoff P, Blazer AD, Tseng CE, Belmont HM, Saxena A, Mulligan MJ, Clancy RM, Buyon JP.
    Arthritis Rheumatol. 2022 Feb;74(2):284-294. doi: 10.1002/art.41937. Epub 2021 Dec 28.
    PMID: 34347939 Free PMC article.
  6. Whole blood drug levels do not correlate with QTc intervals in hydroxychloroquine-treated systemic lupus erythematosus patients.
    Belmont HM, Haj-Ali M.
    Rheumatology (Oxford). 2022 Dec 23;62(1):450-456. doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/keac245.
    PMID: 35426919 Free PMC article.
  7. Evaluation of SARS-CoV-2 IgG antibody reactivity in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus: analysis of a multi-racial and multi-ethnic cohort.
    Saxena A, Guttmann A, Masson M, Kim MY, Haberman RH, Castillo R, Scher JU, Deonaraine KK, Engel AJ, Belmont HM, Blazer AD, Buyon JP, Fernandez-Ruiz R, Izmirly PM; NYU WARCOV Investigators.
    Lancet Rheumatol. 2021 Aug;3(8):e585-e594. doi: 10.1016/S2665-9913(21)00114-4. Epub 2021 May 27.

Review articles

  1. Treatment targets in systemic lupus erythematosus: biology and clinical perspective.
    Marian V, Anolik JH. Arthritis Res Ther. 2012;14 Suppl 4(Suppl 4):S3. doi: 10.1186/ar3917. Epub 2012 Nov 30. PMID: 23281796 Free PMC article. Review.
  2. Medical overuse of therapies and diagnostics in rheumatology.
    Khawaja MN, Alhassan E, Bilal J, Jatwani S, Mehta B, Bhalla V, Morgan DJ, Siaton BC, Hochberg MC. Clin Rheumatol. 2021 May;40(5):2087-2094. doi: 10.1007/s10067-021-05638-2. Epub 2021 Feb 10. PMID: 33569709 Free PMC article.

Published case reports

  1. Strongyloidiasis and diffuse alveolar hemorrhage in a patient with systemic lupus erythematosus. Gonzalez-Ibarra F, Chevli P, Schachter L, Kaur M, Eivaz-Mohammadi S, Tashtoush B, Matta J, Syed AK, Marian V. Case Rep Med. 2014;2014:278390. doi: 10.1155/2014/278390. Epub 2014 Jun 12. PMID: 25024706 Free PMC article.
  2. A 40-Year-Old Man with a 7-Year History of Polyarthritis and a Late Diagnosis of Whipple Disease: A Journey to Resolve the Mystery. Aulakh G, Lewis R, Singh A, Marian V. Am J Case Rep. 2024 Feb 25;25:e942896. doi: 10.12659/AJCR.942896. PMID: 38402412 Free PMC article.
  3. A Rare Cause of Pancytopenia in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (SLE) in a Young Patient. Ameer MA, Tariq MA, Zain S, Kabir A, Khawaja M. Cureus. 2024 Jun 24;16(6):e63032. doi: 10.7759/cureus.63032. eCollection 2024 Jun. PMID: 39050334 Free PMC article.
  4. Methotrexate induced pancytopenia. Gonzalez-Ibarra F, Eivaz-Mohammadi S, Surapaneni S, Alsaadi H, Syed AK, Badin S, Marian V, Elamir M. Case Rep Rheumatol. 2014;2014:679580. doi: 10.1155/2014/679580. Epub 2014 May 27. PMID: 25006519 Free PMC article.
  5. Rituximab-Induced Colitis and Esophagitis in a Patient With Granulomatosis With Polyangiitis.
    Boateng WK, Nkeangu FJ, Castillo MH, Marian V, Shen T.Cureus. 2023 Apr 27;15(4):e38207. doi: 10.7759/cureus.38207. eCollection 2023 Apr. PMID: 37252552 Free PMC article.

Podium presentations

  1. 1. Martinez Paulino A, Marian V
    From Mosquito Bite to Autoimmunity: Anti-Ku-Positive Myositis With Systemic Sclerosis
    Overlap Following Dengue Infection

    New Jersey Rheumatology Association Annual Spring Meeting
    First Place Rheumatology Case Competition for Residents and Fellows
    May 2025 — Iselin, New Jersey, United States

  2. Martinez Paulino A, Marian V
    The Enemy of My Enemy Is Also My Enemy? Mycophenolate, Systemic Lupus
    Erythematosus, and Protein-Losing Enteropathy

    New Jersey Rheumatology Association Annual Spring Meeting
    Second Place Rheumatology Case Competition for Residents and Fellows
    May 2024 — Iselin, New Jersey, United States
  3. Kalemoglu E, Martinez Paulino A, Shah S, Butt F, Marian V
    Adult-Diagnosed Cryopyrin-Associated Periodic Syndrome Presenting with Blurry Vision: A
    Diagnostic Challenge

    New Jersey Rheumatology Association Annual Spring Meeting
    Fourth Place Rheumatology Case Competition for Residents and Fellows
    May 2025 — Iselin, New Jersey

Poster presentations

  1. Martinez Paulino A, Bellamy S, Roshan F, Reza S, Khurram M, Marian V
    When Fungi And Autoimmunity Collide: A Rare Case Of Nonendemic Pulmonary Talaromycosis In A Patient With Rheumatoid Arthritis .
    American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST) – October 2024 — Boston, Massachusetts
  2. Martinez Paulino A, Chahal A, Srivastava P, Marian V
    When Pneumonia Doesn’t Fit: A Case Report of Atypical Antisynthetase Syndrome
    American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST)
    Accepted
    October 2025 — Chicago, Illinois
  3. Martinez Paulino A, Marian V
    Clinical Image: Hidden in Plain Sight: A Case of Tattoo-Associated Sarcoidosis
    ACR Open Rheumatology
    Accepted
    August 2025
  4. Martinez Paulino A, Marian V
    The Perfect Storm: Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis in Dermatomyositis and HIV, EBV and CMV Coinfection
    New Jersey Rheumatology Association Annual Spring Meeting
    May 2025 — Iselin, New Jersey
  5. Martinez Paulino A, Lackey A, Marian V
    Not All That Glows Is Cancer: Diagnosing Sarcoidosis in Suspected Malignant Lesions
    Jersey City Medical Center Residents Research Day
    May 2025 — Jersey City, New Jersey
  6. Martinez Paulino A, Esposito F, Gouni S, Arias Diaz D, Marian V
    When Autoimmunity Meets Malignancy: A Rare Encounter Of Drug-Induced Lupus And
    Mesothelioma

    Jersey City Medical Center Residents Research Day
    May 2024 — Jersey City, New Jersey

  7. Martinez Paulino A, Qureshi M, Shahid M, Marian V
    Gastrointestinal Behçet's Disease Unmasked By An Unusual Pathergy Reaction
    Jersey City Medical Center Residents Research Day
    May 2024 — Jersey City, New Jersey
  8. Martinez Paulino A, Marian V
    Beyond the Usual Suspects: Solving the Puzzle of Adult-Onset Still's Disease
    American College of Physicians New Jersey Chapter Abstract Competition
    Honorable Mention
    February 2024 – New Jersey

Rheumatology Research Projects (PDF)