Treatment for Ankylosing Spondylitis

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Treatment for Ankylosing Spondylitis

The initial treatment of ankylosing spondylitis involves administration of simple painkillers that are available as over-the-counter medications. These medications, which belong to the group of drugs such as ibuprofen, aceclofenac, diclofenac sodium and valdecoxib are known to provide rapid relief from the back pain.

If the pain does not subside with these medications, a second-line of medications known as sulfasalazine may be prescribed for a certain period of time. Other medications that are being prescribed in refractive cases include methotrexate and steroid injections to the affected joint or joints.^{1, 2}

A new group of drug known as tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) inhibitors is being studied recently and has been noted to improve the symptoms along with a potential of modifying the disease progression.^{1– 3}

Written by: Healthplus24 team
Date last modified: July 03, 2011

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References

Kataria RK, Brent LH. Spondyloarthropathies. Am Fam Physician. 2004; 69(12): 2853–2860.
Sieper J, Braun J, Rudwaleit M, Boonen A, Zink A. Ankylosing spondylitis: An overview. Ann Rheum Dis. 2002; 61(Suppl III): 8–18.
Sieper J, Rudwaleit M. How early should ankylosing spondylitis be treated with tumour necrosis factor blockers? Ann Rheum Dis. 2005; 64(Suppl 4): 61–64.