Assistant Professor of Medicine

• M.P.H.: Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health
• M.D.: Hahnemann University School of Medicine, Philadelphia
• Post-doctoral Fellowship: The Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine, Rheumatology
• Internship and Residency: MCP Hahnemann University Hospitals

Dr. Christopher-Stine joined the division after completing her Rheumatology Fellowship at The Johns Hopkins University in June, 2003. She is the Co-Director of The Johns Hopkins Myositis Center. Her research work, funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIAMS), centers upon the development of a comprehensive database of patients evaluated at The National Institutes of Health with autoimmune myositis and related diseases. Dr. Christopher-Stine will utilize her training in epidemiology and biostatistics to develop improved diagnostic and classification criteria for these diseases.

Dr. Christopher-Stine intends to establish a prospective myositis cohort at Johns Hopkins Hospital to undertake a longitudinal cohort study and initiate future intervention protocols for patients with autoimmune myositis. She is in the process of developing a comprehensive, multidisciplinary center for clinical research in which clinical, serologic, imaging, and pathologic information is collected in a systematic manner, with standardized follow-up at quarterly clinic visits. Additionally, sera will be collected bi-annually, including storage for future studies.

The data obtained from the NIH Myositis Database analyses will generate hypotheses from retrospective analyses. These hypotheses can then be directly assessed using this cohort’s prospective design in order to address many compelling questions that remain unanswered because of the lack of an existing cohort such as that proposed.

Dr. Christopher-Stine’s other research interest includes the etiology of statin-associated myotoxicity.

Dr. Christopher-Stine is a faculty member of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Barker Firm. She takes pleasure in teaching medical students, residents, and fellows and thoroughly enjoys her role as an educator. Additionally, Dr. Christopher-Stine evaluates patients weekly and takes pride in her clinical role. She welcomes the challenging interplay among her roles of educator, clinician, and research scientist.

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