Ankylosing Spondylitis (Subscribe)  

Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a chronic, progressive inflammatory rheumatic disease involving primarily the sacroiliac joints and the axial skeleton. The main clinical features are back pain and progressive stiffness of the spine. Oligoarthritis of the hips and shoulders, enthesopathy, and anterior uveitis are common, and involvement of the heart and...

hip joint:
- is affected in upto 50 % of patients with AS, and when it occurs it is often bilateral;
- protrusio and hip flexion contractures are...

Ankylosing spondylitis is a chronic seronegative spondyloarthropathy which primarily involves the axial skeleton (e.g. sacroiliitis and spondylitis). The aetiology is unknown but involves the interaction of genetic and environmental factors. The diagnosis is made by combining clinical criteria of inflammatory back pain and enthesitis (inflammation at the site of bone...

Current treatment of ankylosing spondylitis such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-blockers have shown a good efficacy on sign and symptoms. However, it is less clear whether and how structural damage, determined mainly by new bone formation, can be prevented. Recent progress of the research addressing this...

Background Orthopaedic surgeons frequently encounter patients with ankylosing spondylitis who would benefit from various types of lower limb operations; however, some of these patients present challenges for anesthesiologists.
Case Description We report the case of a 65-year-old patient with a fractured femoral component 30 years after a cemented THA. The patient had severe...

Biomarkers may provide information that promotes understanding of prognosis, disease activity, and pathogenesis in ankylosing spondylitis. Biomarkers reflecting disease activity (metallo- proteinase-3) and inflammatory lesions on magnetic resonance imaging predict new bone formation and are ameliorated by anti- tumor necrosis factor therapy, yet this treatment may not prevent new bone...