1.What is ankylosing spondylitis? Ankylosing spondylitis is a chronic progressive systemic disease that mainly affects the spine, mainly the sacroiliac, hip, intervertebral and cribriform joints. Early manifestations of ankylosing spondylitis include low back pain and back stiffness, and eventually disability due to spinal stiffness and destruction of the hip joint. The disease has an insidious form of onset and is characterized clinically by almost total involvement of the sacroiliac joints. Low back pain, morning stiffness, limited movement in all directions of the lumbar spine and reduced thoracic movement are typical symptoms of ankylosing spondylitis. Ankylosing spondylitis was named central rheumatoid arthritis in the 1950s, and later named rheumatoid spondylitis, people argued for decades whether rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis were one disease or two diseases, and then after the discovery of rheumatoid factor and HLA system, it became clear that ankylosing spondylitis was a separate disease from rheumatoid arthritis. 2. What should I do if I have ankylosing spondylitis? Ankylosing spondylitis is a chronic progressive systemic disease, more than 80% of patients have a good prognosis, most patients are able to perform general work and self-care, and eventually develop into a complete spinal ankylosis, disability is still a minority, which is not actively treated, not functional exercise and appropriate exercise related. Therefore, once diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis, the nature of the disease should be recognized as chronic and difficult to treat, should be prepared for long-term treatment of the mind. But the disease is not incurable, as long as the treatment is timely and appropriate, most patients can be effectively controlled, and can adhere to daily life and work. Therefore, you should actively cooperate with your doctor, do not rush to achieve results, and insist on reasonable treatment. At the same time, long-term functional exercise and appropriate exercise should be adhered to, insisting on functional exercises such as chest expansion, deep breathing, spinal exercises, lower limb exercises, and exercises such as swimming, cycling, walking and jogging. Reasonable Chinese and Western medical treatment and functional exercise are important means to delay and avoid spinal ankylosis and prevent deformity. In addition, some patients with ankylosing spondylitis are in a hurry and keep changing doctors, which not only wastes time and energy, but is also detrimental to treatment, because the treatment of ankylosing spondylitis is long-term, the doctor has a long-term plan in terms of treatment, such as constantly changing doctors, the treatment plan can not be implemented, but will delay the disease.