Olga Dvorkina

Olga Dvorkina is an Associate Professor of Medicine in the Rheumatology Division at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University. She specializes in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) research and clinical trials, focusing on disease activity, nephritis, and therapeutic interventions.

• Education: MD from Kaunas Medical Institute (1984)
• Training: Fellowship in Rheumatology (SUNY Downstate, 1997-1999), Residency in Internal Medicine (St. John's Episcopal Hospital, 1994-1997), Internship (Leningrad City Hospital #38, 1984-1986)

Her research interests include clinical trials for SLE therapies, such as abatacept and belimumab, and investigating associations between lupus and comorbidities like atherosclerosis, malignancies, and neuropsychiatric manifestations. She contributes to the development of lupus classification criteria and flare assessment tools.

Her recent publications and abstracts focus on SLE treatment safety, corticosteroid use, infections, and multi-center registry analyses. She collaborates with pharmaceutical companies (Ocean Blue, GSK, Aurinia, Takeda) and national consortia, including the Lupus Clinical Trials Consortium and Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics.

Notable projects include Phase 3 trials for belimumab and voclosporin in lupus nephritis. She mentors Rheumatology fellows and participates in educational initiatives through textbook authorship and clinical research training.