Ankylosing spondylitis is a relatively rare chronic disease and, fortunately, less disabling than it was before. Indeed, the diagnosis is often made earlier due to the use of diagnostic tests such as magnetic resonance imaging or therapeutic testing with NSAIDs. This test consists of prescribing NSAIDs for 2 or 3 weeks when a patient presents with symptoms that point to the diagnosis of spondylitis, in particular morning or night pain in the lower back. If the symptoms are very clearly reduced by NSAIDs, then we are much more convinced that it is really ankylosing spondylitis. Early treatment of this condition now makes it possible to effectively control the symptoms and limit ankylosis, to the point where this complication has become rare.

If you have had pain in the lower back or buttocks for more than 4 weeks, especially during the night and which disappears after an hour on getting up, do not hesitate to consult your doctor. Such nighttime pains still deserve investigation.

Jacques Allard, MD FCMFC