Biography

Dr. Shazia Bég is a board-certified Rheumatologist. She began her medical career at SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, New York, where she was selected as the single recipient of the Dr. Ruth Burton Medical Merit Scholarship, the Student Citizen Alumni Scholarship and was inducted into the Gold Humanism Honor Society for being a role model in humanistic patient care. She continued at SUNY Upstate Medical University for her internal medicine residency and was chosen by interns and medical students to receive teaching awards. In 2009, Dr. Bég pursued fellowship training in Rheumatology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX. The UCF College of Medicine welcomed Dr. Bég in October 2011 where she established the rheumatology faculty practice at UCF Health. She was recognized for her clinical endeavors by receiving the UCF COM Award for Excellence in Clinical Care in 2015.

As a full-time faculty at UCF COM, Dr. Bég spends her time in clinical practice, research and education. She is the module director for the S-5 skin and musculoskeletal module for second year medical students and also teaches in their clerkship years. She is one of he founders and Associate Program Directors for the new UCF/VA Rheumatology Fellowship program. She is also the faculty advisor for the UCF COM Gold Humanism Honor Society. She actively mentors several students in their research projects for the FIRE module. She precepts the UCF COM internal medicine residents during their rheumatology electives. She mentors residents and medical students to pursue rheumatology as a specialty given the disparity of specialists in this field.

Her research and clinical interests include conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, lupus and osteoporosis. Her research investigates the role of diet, environment and lifestyle on these rheumatic diseases. Her goal for her research and patient care is to facilitate collaborative and compassionate care, one that includes health care professionals and their patients working together.

Dr. Bég is an associate member of the American College of Rheumatology, Florida Society of Rheumatology and International Society for Clinical Densitometry. She is an advisor and frequent speaker at various local support groups for rheumatic diseases. She is actively involved with the Arthritis Foundation, National Psoriasis Foundation and the Lupus Foundation. In 2017 and 2018, Dr. Beg was recognized as a Florida ‘Top Doc’ by Orlando Family Magazine based on patient reviews, credentials, and peers-consumers’ checkbook national review list.

Abstracts and Publications

1. Sharp RC, Bég SA, Naser SA. Polymorphisms Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase Non-receptor Type 2 and 22 (PTPN2/22) are Linked to Hyper-Proliferative T-Cells and Susceptibility to Mycobacteria in Rheumatoid Arthritis. Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology 2018; 8:11
2. Sharp RC, Bég SA, Naser SA. Role of PTPN2/22 polymorphisms in pathophysiology of Crohn’s disease. World J Gastroenterol 2018; 24(6): 657-670
3. Warner LA, Bég S. Utilization of Complementary and Integrative Medicine among Lupus Patients: A Patient Centered Analysis of Perceived Effectiveness and Preference. International Congress on Integrative Medicine, Baltimore MD May 2018
4. Updyke KM, Urso B, Bég SA. Developing a Continuous Quality Improvement Assessment Using a Patient-Centered Approach in Optimizing Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Control. Cureus 9(10): e1762 10.7759/cureus.1762, 2017
5. Updyke KM, Urso B, Solomon JS, Bég S. Identifying the role of molecular mimicry with exogenous nucleic antigens in affecting the exacerbations and remissions of systemic lupus erythematous through patient centered outcome research methodology. American Academy of Dermatology Annual Meeting, Orlando, March 2017
6. DePesa NS, Bég S, Dotson K, Bhanusali N, Williams R, Cassisi J. Development and Implementation of an Interdisciplinary Chronic Pain Intervention for Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis. Rehabilitation Psychology Conference, Albuquerque, NM. Feb 2017
7. Bég S, Ziyar A. An Examination of Patient Knowledge and Education in Patients with Osteoporosis, Osteopenia and Normal Bone Mineral Density. Poster presentation at ACR/ARHP Annual Scientific Meeting, Washington DC, Nov 2016
8. Bég S, Ahmed Ali. Relationships between Anxiety, Depression, Sleep, Fibromyalgia and BMI in Patients with Rheumatic Disease. Poster presentation at ACR/ARHP Annual Scientific Meeting, San Francisco, Nov 2015
9. Lewis S, Solomon J, Stines M, Ramshaw, Bég S.  Designing a Continuous Quality Improvement Assessment System Utilizing Complex Adaptive Systems Science to Improve Treatment Outcomes in Patients with SLE.  Am Fed Med Research Eastern Reg Mtg.  Washington, DC April 2014
10. Stines M, Solomon JA, Ramshaw B, Kolpashchikov DM, Lewis S, Domozych R, Bég S.  Identifying the Role of Molecular Mimicry in SLE immune complex disease.  Translational Science 2014 Annual Meeting, Washington DC April 2014
11. Lewis S, Solomon J, Stines M, Ramshaw, Bég S.  Designing a Continuous Quality Improvement Assessment System Utilizing Complex Adaptive Systems Science to Improve Treatment Outcomes in Patients with SLE.  FL Med Soc Mtg.  Orlando FL June 2014
12. Solomon JA, Ramshaw B, Stines M, Lewis S, Domozych R Iarrobino A, Caldwell C, Bég SA. Complex Adaptive Systems Approach to Continuous Quality Improvement Assessments Applied to Dermatology, Part I (Overview) Practical Dermatology, 1:38-9, 2014
13. Bég S, Borrero J. Competency and Confidence in Musculoskeletal Medicine for the first graduating class of a new medical school. ACR/ARHP Annual Scientific Meeting, Chicago IL, Nov 2013
14. Bég S, Sessoms S, Popovich J. Early Aggressive Combination Therapy with Cyclophosphamide, Cyclosporine and Intravenous Immunoglobulins for Rapidly Progressive Interstitial Lung Disease in Polymyositis and Dermatomyositis; A Case Series, Excellence in Rheumatology Meeting in Istanbul, Turkey, Feb 2011
15. Bég S, de Achaval S, Kallen MA, Cox V, Richardson M, Reveille J, Suarez-Almazor ME. Determinants of Treatment Adherence in Patients with Systemic Lupus Erythematosus.  ACR/ARHP Annual Scientific Meeting. San Diego CA, Nov 2010