Ankylosing Spondylitis

Ankylosing Spondylitis – General Information

Ankylosing Spondylitis – Symptoms

Ankylosing Spondylitis – Treatment

There is no cure for Ankylosing Spondylitis, but there exists a trial of treatments and medications that have the effect of reducing the symptoms and relieve the pain. There are many ways to treat the disease, and includes physical therapy and exercise, in combination with medication, are the main participants of therapy for Ankylosing Spondylitis. The physiotherapy and the physical exercises are usually preceded by drug treatment to reduce any inflammations and pain, and are supervised by a physician. Doing this type of therapy, using the movements and medications, will help to improve the pain and stiffness, but these exercises in an active inflammatory form will make the pain worse. After the disease prognosis the doctor should prescribe a treatment trial including some medications like nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs, corticosteroidsand tumor necrosis factors, which will help in curing the disease. The nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are prescribed as naproxen, or Naprosyn, and indomethacin, or Indocin, and are used only to relive the pain and cure the inflammation. The disease modifying antirheumatic drugs are prescribes as sulfasalazine, or Azulfidine, and methothrexate, or Rheumatrex, and are used to treat the inflammations in the affected joints in all tissues, and helps limit the joint damage production. Corticosteroids prescribed as prednisone, and are used to treat also inflammations and the joint damage in the severe cases of the disease, but can be taken orally, in limited trial because of the side effects, and intravenously, injected into the affected joint. The tumor necrosis factor blockers are prescribed as adalimumab, or Humira, etanercept, or Enbrel and are used to treat the pain and to decrease the inflammation. These blockers block the tumor necrosis factor, which is a protein, which acts as an inflammatory agent.

Another participant in the treatment of Ankylosing Spondylitis is physical therapy, which can add several benefits, such as pain relief, physical strength and flexibility. Usually, the doctor recommends a physician to help the patient to the exact exercises needed. The physical therapy consists in stretching exercises which have the goal to maintain the joint flexibility, leading to a good posture. These exercises, in combination with breathing exercises, help to maintain a perfect lung capacity. Depending on the severity of the Ankylosing Spondylitis, the body begins to stoop forward, and the improvement of the body posture can be obtain by having a proper sleep, walking positions, in combination with abdominal and back exercises. But, doing this treatment, the bodies spine can become stiff, which can be fixed by fusing it in a good position, due to the good posture. Another treatment option in curing Ankylosing Spondylitits is considered the surgical treatment, which intervenes in the severe cases of the disease, by replacing the joints, especially in the knees and hips areas. There can be done a surgical correction, if the spine presents a severe downward curvature, especially in the neck area, and this procedure is considered a very risky one, because there can appear many complex manifestations due to the anesthesia.