The NIAMS MCRC (Multidisciplinary Clinical Research Center). Directed by S. Louis Bridges, Jr, MD, PhD, Division of Clinical Immunology & Rheumatology is a program designed to foster and promote research related to the causes, diagnosis, treatment, and improved care of patients suffering from arthritis and musculoskeletal diseases (MSD). To this end, highly-rigorous fundamental and clinical research is supported with state-of-the-art methodology with the following mission: (1) To conduct outstanding, innovative research projects drawing on the unique strengths of the AMC and using state-of-the-art tools from statistics, epidemiology, outcomes, health services, and behavioral research; (2) To foster the development of new projects and the development and application of new evaluative, analytic, and translational methods to research in arthritis and MSD; (3) To promote the training of new, and the continuing education of established, clinical investigators in the most current methods of research and evaluation applicable to arthritis and MSD