While his medical training and practice have taken him across much of Europe and the U.S., Antonios Papadopoulos, MD, is excited to return to East Central Illinois where he remembers its warm, friendly patient population as his favorite. Dr. Papadopoulos practices nephrology (kidney care) and internal medicine.
Dr. Papadopoulos will practice at the SBL Family Medical Center in Mattoon. Preventing kidney problems for many at-risk individuals, such as those with diabetes, high blood pressure or obesity, is of high importance to him.
A desire to improve what he calls “the most important thing in life— health,” a strong interest in science, and motivation from his physician father led Dr. Papadopoulos to pursue medicine. Born in France, Dr. Papadopoulos was raised in Greece and studied medicine in Brussels, Belgium at Catholic University of Louvain Medical School. After completing his training and his first two-year internal residency in Europe, Dr. Papadopoulos came to the U.S. for three years of internal medicine residencies that took him across the country— from California to the East Coast. He completed his extensive training with a two-year fellowship in nephrology at New England Medical Center in Boston.
Dr. Papadopoulos began practicing in Champaign, where he says he “had the greatest satisfaction of connecting with people.” He spent the next 21 years in private practice in Chicago. Throughout his career, he has split his time between internal medicine and nephrology because he believes they go hand-in-hand.
As an internist, Dr. Papadopoulos focuses on preventive care, education and keeping people healthy. “Preventive care is important— taking care of weight, blood pressure and cholesterol, plus knowing about any health concerns; it helps patients live healthy lives,” he said.
Dr. Papadopoulos finds nephrology especially rewarding because he has the ability, through science, to help his patients prevent or delay kidney problems. He finds that many of his patients are at risk for kidney complications.
“Many people are not aware of how significant the impacts can be of high blood pressure, diabetes and some other diseases,” he said. Diabetes is the leading cause of kidney failure, therefore those with diabetes or with high blood pressure benefit from seeing a nephrologist. “We can prevent kidney failure by monitoring the kidneys, controlling diabetes, giving appropriate medications and controlling blood pressure,” he explained.
As an avid reader, Dr. Papadopoulos enjoys studying history, and he spends at least an hour per day reading outside of medical research. He recently moved to Mattoon with his wife, Marija, and he has two adult sons.
To make an appointment with Dr. Papadopoulos, call SBL Family Medical Center at 217 234-7000. His office is located at 200 Richmond Avenue East, Suite 3, Mattoon.