The differences between dense osteitis and ankylosing spondylitis include different etiologic factors, different clinical manifestations, and different auxiliary examinations.
1. Different etiology: the former is mostly in female patients with a history of labor and delivery, and the situation will worsen with the increase in the number of deliveries. The latter mainly occurs in male patients, with obvious family history, mainly paternal, and most of them are positive for histocompatibility antigen HLA-B27 (which is human leukocyte antigen B27).
2. The clinical manifestations are different: the former is characterized by low back pain and leg pain, which increases with pregnancy or childbirth. The latter is characterized by unexplained low back pain and sacroiliac joint pain with stiffness, and then the symptoms will progress upward, and spinal mobility will gradually disappear until the spine becomes ankylosed.
3. Auxiliary examination is different: the former X-ray sacroiliac joint gap is normal, the middle and lower two thirds of the iliac bone sclerosis. In the latter, the sacroiliac joint space narrows on X-ray, and in the later stage, due to the ossification of the intervertebral space and ligaments, the spine is stiff and looks like a bamboo-like change. Also, the blood is highly positive for HLA-B27.
It is recommended that patients presenting with dense osteitis and ankylosing spondylitis seek prompt medical attention and different treatments under doctor’s supervision.