Spondylitis, a
progressive disease of the spine, exists in two forms,
ankylosing and tuberculous spondylitis. Ankylosing
Spondylitis is a disease of unknown cause but with evidence of genetic transmission, occurring nine times more frequently in males than in females. It is a progressive form of arthritis and begins in the lower back, a common cause of pain in men in their twenties and thirties. The disease is characterized by degeneration of vertebral joints, calcium and bone
deposition in
associated ligaments, and inflammation of surrounding tissues.
Vertebrae tend to fuse as a result of bone deposition between them (ankylosis). Associated compression of spinal nerves causes pain to radiate to other body areas. As the disease spreads up the spine, substantial stiffening and deformity can develop over a period of ten years or more. Patients are treated with antiinflammatory drugs for the symptoms and exercise programs for maintenance of correct posture.
Tuberculous spondylitis, or Pott disease, is caused by tuberculosis or other infectious agents in a vertebra, where the infection can destroy intervertebral discs and spread to adjacent vertebrae. Treatment consists of antibiotics and sometimes surgical drainage of abscesses and fusion of affected vertebrae.
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