Dr. Susan Kim is a pediatric rheumatologist who cares for children and adolescents with inflammatory rheumatic diseases, including juvenile idiopathic arthritis, lupus, scleroderma and autoinflammatory conditions. She has particular expertise in vasculitis and other conditions affecting blood vessels, and in juvenile dermatomyositis (JDM), an inflammatory disease that causes muscle weakness and skin problems. She directs the combined rheumatology and dermatology clinic at UCSF Benioff Children's Hospitals, which seeks to improve the care of children with JDM and other inflammatory skin diseases. In addition, she leads the JDM Center of Excellence at UCSF, which was established in 2022.
Kim's research focuses on JDM and other rheumatic diseases. She is the principal investigator at UCSF for the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA) Registry.
Kim earned her medical degree at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University College of Medicine, part of the State University of New York system. She earned a master of medical science degree at Harvard Medical School, focusing on clinical and translational research. She completed a residency in pediatrics at New York – Presbyterian Hospital and a fellowship in pediatric rheumatology at Boston Children's Hospital. She practiced at Boston Children's until 2016, when she moved to the Bay Area to join UCSF.
Kim is a member of the American College of Rheumatology; Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance, for which she chairs the JDM research committee; Pediatric Dermatology Research Alliance; and International Myositis Assessment & Clinical Studies Group, for which she serves as vice chair of the scientific advisory committee. She also serves on the medical and scientific advisory committee for the Cure JM Foundation.
In her free time, Kim enjoys baking up new recipes and finding new places in the Bay Area to explore with her two children.
