Désirée van der Heijde is a distinguished professor of rheumatology and a leading authority in outcome research methodology within clinical rheumatology. She currently holds a position as Professor of Rheumatology, specializing in outcome research, at the Leiden University Medical Center with a 0.2 full-time equivalent appointment entirely dedicated to research. After earning her medical degree in 1986 from the Catholic University in Nijmegen, she completed her PhD in 1991 with research focused on disease activity and outcomes in rheumatoid arthritis. Prior to her current appointment at Leiden, she served on the rheumatology department at Maastricht University Medical Center from 1994 to 2007 and held a one-year appointment in Sweden in 1993. She has maintained significant international collaborations, including an affiliation with Diakonhjemmet Hospital in Oslo since 2007 and a visiting professorship at the University of Oslo since 2014.
Professor van der Heijde has pioneered transformative methodologies for assessing disease activity and outcomes in rheumatological conditions, fundamentally reshaping clinical research standards worldwide. She developed the DAS28 disease activity index, which has become the global standard for measuring rheumatoid arthritis activity in clinical trials and practice. Her innovative work on radiographic scoring methods for rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, and spondyloarthritis has established critical benchmarks for evaluating structural damage progression. Additionally, she has made significant contributions to the development and validation of magnetic resonance imaging scoring systems for spondyloarthritis, enhancing early detection and treatment monitoring. With over 950 publications in prestigious international journals and numerous contributions to leading rheumatology textbooks, her scholarly work has profoundly influenced evidence-based approaches to rheumatological care.
Beyond her research contributions, Professor van der Heijde has played a pivotal leadership role in shaping rheumatology as a discipline through numerous influential positions and collaborations. She served as Chairperson of the Assessment of SpondyloArthritis international Society for 17 years from 1995 to 2012 and chaired the EULAR Standing Committee for Clinical Affairs from 2011 to 2019. Her exceptional contributions have been recognized with prestigious honors including the Carol Nachman Award in 2011, an honorary doctorate from the University of Ghent in 2012, and the Jan van Breemen medal in 2017. Currently serving as chair of the Executive Committee of FOREUM and as associate editor of the Annals of Rheumatic Diseases, she continues to drive innovation in rheumatology research methodology and clinical practice guidelines. Her ongoing work focuses on refining outcome measures to improve patient-centered care and advance personalized treatment approaches for inflammatory rheumatic diseases.
