The following are the most important diseases or complications that can be caused by ankylosing spondylitis:
Eyes and eye appendages (H00-H59).
- Acute anterior uveitis/inflammation of the anterior segment of the eye (iridocyclitis/inflammation of the iris).
- Glaucoma (glaucoma)
- Cataract (cataract)
Respiratory system (J00-J99)
- Pulmonary fibrosis – connective tissue remodeling of the lungs leading to functional limitation.
Endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases (E00-E90).
- Amyloidosis – extracellular (“outside the cell”) deposits of amyloids (degradation-resistant proteins) that can lead to cardiomyopathy (heart muscle disease), neuropathy (peripheral nervous system disease), and hepatomegaly (liver enlargement), among other conditions.
Skin and subcutaneous (L00-L99).
- Psoriasis (psoriasis) – is often associated with ankylosing spondylitis.
Cardiovascular system (I00-I99)
- Acute coronary syndrome (AKS; acute coronary syndrome, ACS) – spectrum of cardiovascular disease ranging from unstable angina (“chest tightness”; sudden onset of pain in the cardiac region with inconstant symptoms) to the two main forms of myocardial infarction (heart attack), non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) and ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).
- Aortic valve regurgitation – heart valve defect that leads to inadequate closure of the heart’s aortic valve.
- “aortic bump” (fibrotic structure on the anterior mitral leaflet).
- Aortitis (inflammation of the aorta).
- Apoplexy (stroke)
- Excitation conduction disorders (AV block II° and III°); ventricular extrasystoles (less characteristic).
- Coronary artery disease (CAD; coronary artery disease).
- Left ventricular (“affecting the left ventricle“) dysfunction and left heart failure (left-sided heart failure).
- Mitral regurgitation (less characteristic) – valvular defect resulting in defective closure of the mitral valve of the heart.
- Myocardial fibrosis
- Myocardial infarction (heart attack)
Mouth, esophagus (food pipe), stomach, and intestines (K00-K67; K90-K93).
- Crohn’s disease – chronic inflammatory bowel disease (IBD); usually progresses in episodes and can affect the entire digestive tract; characterized by segmental involvement of the intestinal mucosa (intestinal mucosa), which means that several sections of the intestine may be affected, separated by healthy sections. (Often associated with ankylosing spondylitis).
- Periodontitis – inflammation of the periodontium / parodont (about seven times higher risk).
Musculoskeletal system and connective tissue (M00-M99).
- Osteoporosis (bone loss)
- Secondary muscle tension
- Stiffening of the spine
- Spinal fracture (spinal fracture), possibly with spinal cord injury.
Psyche – nervous system (F00-F99; G00-G99)
- Cauda equina syndrome (cauda equina compression syndrome) – this refers to a combination of multiple neurologic deficits due to massive crushing of the cauda equina (collection of intradural spinal nerves at the end of the spinal cord).
Symptoms and abnormal clinical and laboratory parameters, not elsewhere classified (R00-R99).
- Pain
Genitourinary system (kidneys, urinary tract – sex organs) (N00-N99)
- Nephropathy (kidney damage) caused mainly by the amyloid deposits.
- Prostatitis (inflammation of the prostate)
