Abstract:
Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) or Bechterew's disease is a chronic systemic disease of the joints with predominant localization of the process in the sacroiliac joints, joints of the spine and paravertebral soft tissues. Over a five-year period, the incidence of the adult population of the Russian Federation increased by 32.2% for spondylopathies. The incidence of spondylopathies among inflammatory diseases of the joints ranks second after rheumatoid arthritis. The increase in incidence per 100,000 population is especially high in the Far East, North Caucasus, and Siberian federal districts (by 47.5%, 48.4%, and 39.7%, respectively) [1].
