rheumatoid spondylitis

Thesaurus

Noun

rheumatoid spondylitis - a chronic form of spondylitis primarily in males and marked by impaired mobility of the spine; sometimes leads to ankylosisankylosing spondylitis, Marie-Strumpell diseaseautoimmune disease, autoimmune disorder - any of a large group of diseases characterized by abnormal functioning of the immune system that causes your immune system to produce antibodies against your own tissuesspondylitis - inflammation of a spinal joint; characterized by pain and stiffness

Rheumatoid Spondylitis

rheumatoid spondylitis

[′rü·mə‚tȯid ‚spän·də′līd·əs] (medicine) A chronic progressive arthritis of young men, affecting mainly the spine and sacroiliac joints, leading to fusion and deformity. Also known as Marie-Strümpell disease.

Spondylitis, Rheumatoid

(also Bekhterev’s disease, Ma-rie-Strümpell disease), a chronic systemic disease of the vertebral joints in man that often results in the rigidity (ossification) of the entire spine. The different forms of rheumatoid spondylitis were first described by the German doctor of internal medicine A. Strümpell (1886), by V. M. Bekhterev (1893), and by the French neuropathologist P. Marie (1898).

The etiology of rheumatoid spondylitis is unknown, although many investigators believe the disease to be an allergic reaction to the focus of an infection in the body. Rheumatoid spondylitis generally affects men between the ages of 20 and 40. It begins with inflammatory changes in the spinal joints and surrounding ligaments and muscles and develops for many years with intermittent exacerbations and remissions. The main symptoms are pain, increasing spinal stiffness, and changes in the spine’s shape, with a forward flexure characteristic of the thoracic and cervical spinal segments. Changes in the coxofemoral and other joints may also occur.

Roentgenologic examination of the spine is important in diagnosing rheumatoid spondylitis. Treatment consists in eliminating the focus of the infection, for example, by cleaning the oral cavity and removing chronically infected tonsils. Also used are corticosteroids, antibiotics, and anti-inflammatories, including butadion, Rheopyrine, and salicylates. Physical therapy and sanatorium-health resort treatment are important in treating the disease. Deformities may be prevented by traction and corrective exercise, as well as by sleeping on a hard, flat bed. Surgical treatment is used to correct spinal deformities and restore mobility in other joints.

REFERENCE

Mnogotomnoe rukovodstvo po ortopedii i travmatologii, vol. 1. Moscow, 1967.

V. F. POZHARISKII

rheumatoid spondylitis

spondylitis

[spon″dĭ-li´tis] inflammation of the vertebrae, usually a serious and chronic disorder. It may be associated with tuberculosis of the bones, in which case it is called pott's disease. The vertebrae become eroded and collapse, causing kyphosis. Spondylitis may also be associated with other infectious diseases, such as brucellosis, in which the intervertebral disks and the vertebrae are affected and sometimes destroyed; this is one cause of spondylitis" >ankylosing spondylitis, a particularly serious variety.ankylosing spondylitis (Bekhterev's spondylitis) a form of arthritis" >rheumatoid arthritis that affects the spine, characterized by inflammation of the facet joints and inflammatory changes of the stabilizing ligaments of the spine (enthesopathy). It affects males almost exclusively. There is stiffening of spinal joints and ligaments, so that movement becomes increasingly painful and difficult. When it runs its full course, it results in bony ankylosis of the vertebral joints, which may extend to the ribs and limit the flexibility of the rib cage, so that breathing is impaired. Called also Marie-Strümpell disease or spondylitis and rheumatoid spondylitis.

Typical posture of patient with ankylosing spondylitis. From Copstead and Banasik, 2000.Kümmell's spondylitis Kümmell's disease.Marie-Strümpell spondylitis ankylosing spondylitis.post-traumatic spondylitis Kümmell's disease.rheumatoid spondylitis ankylosing spondylitis.

an·ky·los·ing spon·dy·li·tis

[MIM*106300] arthritis of the spine, resembling rheumatoid arthritis, which may progress to bony ankylosis with ossification of the anterior and posterior longitudinal ligaments; the disease is more common in males, often with the rheumatoid factor absent and the HLA antigen present. There is a striking association with the B27 tissue type and the strong familial aggregation suggests an important genetic factor, perhaps inherited as an autosomal dominant [MIM*106300]; the mechanism, however, remains obscure. Synonym(s): Marie-Strümpell disease, rheumatoid spondylitis, Strümpell-Marie disease

an·ky·los·ing spon·dy·li·tis

(ang'ki-lōs-ing spon'di-lī'tis) Arthritis of the spine, resembling rheumatoid arthritis, which may progress to bony ankylosis with lipping of vertebral margins; the disease is more common in the male, often with the rheumatoid factor absent and the HLA antigen present. There is a striking association with the B27 tissue type and the strong familial aggregation suggests an important genetic factor.
Synonym(s): rheumatoid spondylitis.

rheumatoid spondylitis

See ANKYLOSING SPONDYLITIS.

Patient discussion about rheumatoid spondylitis

Q. Is ankylosing spondylitis genetically inherited? A. It is known today that ankylosing spondylitis (spondyloarthritis) has a very strong genetic connection. It is not a disease inhertited by a single gene that is dominant, but certainly there is genetic predisposition in families (and a more detailed information- about 90% of the patients express the HLA-B27 genotype).

More discussions about rheumatoid spondylitis

rheumatoid spondylitis

Related to rheumatoid spondylitis: Marie-Strümpell disease, Bamboo spine

noun

Synonyms for rheumatoid spondylitis

noun a chronic form of spondylitis primarily in males and marked by impaired mobility of the spine

Synonyms

ankylosing spondylitis
Marie-Strumpell disease

Related Words

autoimmune disease
autoimmune disorder
spondylitis