New faculty spotlight: Sarah Lonowski, MD

Sarah Lonowski, MD

Sarah Lonowski, MD, is a new faculty member at UNMC.

  • Name: Sarah Lonowski, MD
  • Hometown: Fort Collins, Colorado
  • Title and department at UNMC/Title at Nebraska Medicine: Assistant professor, co-director of the Multidisciplinary Autoimmune Skin Disease/Derm-Rheum Program and director of the Psoriasis-Psoriatic Arthritis Clinic

Previous positions:

  • Dermatology residency, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
  • Dermatology-rheumatology fellowship, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston

Professional and medical interests:

  • Autoimmune connective tissue diseases
  • Medical dermatology
  • Dermatomyositis
  • Cutaneous lupus
  • Morphea
  • Scleroderma
  • Eosinophilic fasciitis
  • Psoriasis

How I fell in love with dermatology: One of the first cases I saw as a medical student was a woman who developed a severe medication reaction called drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms, or DRESS, which resulted in a full body rash as well as fever and facial swelling. When I saw the patient in clinic follow up months after the rash had resolved, she had new symptoms of fatigue, hair loss and weight gain and was discovered to have new-onset hypothyroidism – an autoimmune condition believed to be triggered by her drug reaction. I was fascinated that a rash on the skin could lead to an internal autoimmune disease. Since that time, I have developed a passion for medical dermatology, particularly autoimmune skin diseases as well as connective tissue diseases that fall at the intersection of dermatology and rheumatology.

Education:

  • Doctor of Medicine, UCLA
  • Masters of Business Administration, University of Denver
  • Bachelor of Arts, University of Denver

Memberships:

  • Fellow, American Academy of Dermatology
  • Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Society
  • Rheumatologic Dermatology Society
  • Women’s Dermatologic Society

Three things people may not know about me:

  • I love hiking and skiing.
  • I love all types of ethnic food and will try anything once.
  • No matter how I try, I can’t whistle.

Clinic location:

  • Lauritzen Outpatient Center
  • Westroads Clinic

For appointments and referrals: Call 800-922-0000