Some people with ankylosing spondylitis develop eye disease (uveitis), skin disease (psoriasis), or gut disease (inflammatory bowel disease). There is no cure for ankylosing spondylitis but there are many treatment options to help control symptoms.
Ankylosing spondylitis can cause health issues beyond your joints, including uveitis, or inflammation of the eye, says Erin Bauer, MD, a rheumatologist at Virginia Mason Franciscan Health in Seattle.
Ankylosing spondylitis, also known as axial spondyloarthritis, is an inflammatory disease that, over time, can cause some of the bones in the spine, called vertebrae, to fuse. This fusing makes the spine less flexible and can result in a hunched posture. If ribs are affected, it can be difficult to breathe deeply.
"B27 disease" is a new autoimmune disease that afflicts millions of people throughout the world. "B27 disease" occurs in individuals who have ankylosing spondylitis (AS) or preankylosing spondylitis and/or uveitis and are also positive for HLA-B27.
While both multiple sclerosis and ankylosing spondylitis are autoimmune diseases, they are otherwise unrelated and rarely coexist. MS is a disease of the brain and spinal cord, whereas ankylosing spondylitis is a type of inflammatory arthritis that mainly affects the spinal and sacroiliac joints.
Complications of ankylosing spondylitis
Some people with AS are able to remain fully independent or minimally disabled in the long term. However, some people eventually become severely disabled as a result of the bones in their spine fusing in a fixed position and damage to other joints, such as the hips or knees.
Ankylosing spondylitis may affect more than the spine. The disease may inflame joints in the pelvis, shoulders, hips and knees, and between the spine and ribs. People with AS are more prone to spinal fractures (broken vertebrae).
The symptoms usually appear between the ages of 15 and 45 years. While there's currently no cure for AS, there are many things you can do to help control your symptoms. Ankylosing spondylitis is an autoimmune disease. That means that it occurs as a result of a faulty immune system.
The most common symptoms are intermittent flare-ups of spinal pain and stiffness. However, the disease can also affect other joints, as well as the eyes and the intestines. In advanced AS, abnormal bone growth or calcification of the ligaments of the vertebral bodies of the spine may cause the joints to fuse.
While people with ankylosing spondylitis taking biologic medications might be at an increased risk of infections, there is no evidence at this time that suggests that patients with ankylosing spondylitis are at an increased risk of acquiring COVID-19 or having more severe symptoms if they do get sick.
General symptoms
Symptoms of AS include those related to inflammatory back pain, peripheral enthesitis and arthritis, and constitutional and organ-specific extra-articular manifestations. Because AS is a systemic inflammatory disease, systemic features are common.
Ankylosing spondylitis can affect the way your brain works. It can cause problems with thinking, remembering, and concentrating. The effect can worsen over time and prevent you from taking care of yourself.
The long-term outlook for people with ankylosing spondylitis can also vary greatly. For some, pain may be intermittent while for others it's chronic. In some cases, ankylosing spondylitis can be debilitating and lead to disability, according to the SAA.
As ankylosing spondylitis progresses, unchecked inflammation can contribute to other complications that can affect a person's life. The effects of these complications can vary from mild to debilitating, and people should speak with a doctor to understand their options for managing their symptoms.
"Fatigue from inflammation in ankylosing spondylitis can feel like you have the flu. You can ache all over," says Rochelle Rosian, MD, the director of regional rheumatology at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio. “That's because inflammation affects your whole body, not just your joints.”
It is a rare disease, there is no cure, and you will end up in a wheelchair.
Results: The study comprised 5,930 AS patients and 29,018 matched controls who were followed up for a median period of 7.5 years. There were 667 deaths within the AS cohort and 2,919 deaths within controls; the mean age at death was 76.9 years and 77.1 years, respectively (P = 0.74).
Ankylosing spondylitis is one of the conditions in the SSA's Listing of Impairments. This document provides details on medical conditions that may impair a person's ability to work, qualifying them for SSDI. AS falls under section 14.00, which is called “Immune System Disorders — Adult.”
Ankylosing spondylitis is a type of arthritis that causes inflammation in the joints and ligaments of the spine. It may also affect peripheral joints like the knees, ankles, and hips. Normally, the joints and ligaments in the spine help us move and bend.
Ankylosing spondylitis is a type of inflammatory arthritis. Fibromyalgia is a disease of widespread musculoskeletal pain that is thought to related to be how the brain processes pain.
The inflammatory or ankylosing spondylitis can cause weaker bones and sometimes lead to osteoporosis. Spondylitis affects the lumber spine (lower back) and sacroiliac joints, but in peripheral spondylitis, the joints farther from the spine, such as hands and feet, are involved.