Ankylosing Spondylitis comes from the Greek words:
-ankylosing="fusing together"
-spondyl="vertebrae"
-itis="inflammation"
Given these root words, we can deduce that AS is a disease in which 1 or all of the joints and bones of the spine become fused together.
(Click here to see how AS affects the spine and other joints of the body.)
AS is a systemic disease, meaning it can also affect other body organs, such as the eyes, lungs, and heart.
(Click here to see how AS affects the heart, lungs, and eyes.)
-HLA-B27
-other genes/factors
