Can female spondylitis be cured?

Ankylosing spondylitis usually occurs in men, because men are the strongest pillars of a family, so most of the dirty and tiring work is contracted by them. They often feel back pain when doing some tiring work, which is very easy to cause spondylitis. The probability of women suffering from spondylitis is also relatively high. So can female spondylitis be cured?

Ankylosing spondylitis is a chronic disease that mainly affects the spine, axial skeleton and four major joints of the limbs, and is characterized by fibrosis of the intervertebral disc annulus and nearby ligaments, and ankylosis of the joints.

The cause of this disease is still not fully understood, and may be related to genetic inheritance, infection, trauma, gonorrhea, etc. Pathological changes begin with synovitis characterized by proliferative granulation tissue, and the tendency of joints to develop bony ankylosis becomes significant. The lesion site of this disease is the attachment of tendons and ligaments to bones, also known as "attachment arthritis". The bone at the attachment site is eroded and destroyed by inflammatory substances and replaced by connective tissue of lymphocytes and plasma cells. The lesions extend along the ligaments or tendon blood vessels, and the bone marrow tissue around the lesions also has edema, infiltration of lymphocytes and plasma cells, and new bone reaction occurs in the bone of the destroyed area. Excessive reparative new bone formation extends toward the attached tendons or ligaments to form osteophytes. After joint synovitis, the joint capsule gradually ossifies, the joint becomes ankylosed, and the adjacent bone surfaces of the joint are eroded by the medullary blood vessels and gradually filled with bone deposits. Ligament osteophytes are also formed at the attachment point of the spinal annulus fibrosus and vertebral cartilage, in front and on the sides of the intervertebral disc, causing bony ankylosis of the intervertebral disc. Ligament lesions are most obvious in the front. Between the vertebral segments, the ligaments ossify to form bone bridges, similar to bamboo joints, which are called "bamboo-like spine". Later, the cartilage plates ossify, the cartilage turns into bone, and the blood vessels erode the intervertebral discs, causing the intervertebral discs to gradually ossify.

The lesions often first occur in the sacroiliac joints, knee joints, lumbar spine or hip joints, but can also occur in other joints or tendon attachments. The onset is insidious, with symptoms of pain and stiffness in the above-mentioned parts, which worsens on cloudy days or after fatigue, and then gradually spreads upward. When the lesion expands to the thoracic spine and the thoracic joints are affected, chest cage movement is restricted, breathing is difficult, and intercostal neuralgia occurs. The rotation, flexion and extension of the neck and head are limited, and the entire spine is stiff. This manifestation often extends upward or downward, and is more common in women. The lesions often begin at the cervical or thoracic vertebrae, gradually moving downward to involve the lumbar spine, sacroiliac joints, and hip joints. Patients experience radicular pain and migratory pain in the joints of the limbs, which is relieved during the progression of the disease. In patients in the middle and late stages, round kyphosis is often seen, mostly occurring in the thoracic spine or thoracolumbar region. Some patients may experience joint straightening, flexion, and rotational deformities. Disuse atrophy is often seen around the affected joints.

(1) Recurrent pain in the sacroiliac joints, lower back and back.

(2) Patients in the early and middle stages have limited mobility, while patients in the late stages develop ankylosing and fixed spine and limited chest mobility.

(3) Laboratory examinations show that erythrocyte sedimentation rate is often increased, RF is often negative, and HLA--B27 is often positive.

(4) X-ray examination: in the early stage, the sacroiliac joints are blurred and the space between the vertebral facet joints is changed. In the middle stage, the sacroiliac joints are dentate, some ligaments are calcified, the vertebrae and facet joints are destroyed, and the joint space is blurred. In the late stage, X-rays show fusion of the sacroiliac joints and bamboo-like changes in the spine.