The role of etanercept in ankylosing spondylitis

Ankylosing spondylitis is a chronic inflammatory disease that leads to significant loss of function and disability in patients. Current conventional therapies have not demonstrated improvement in axial symptoms and progressive ankylosis of the spine. The use of new biologic agents that block the actions of tumor necrosis factor-alpha have, for the first time, reported significant improvement in axial symptoms and reduction in spinal inflammation in short-term studies. Future studies with larger numbers of patients over long periods of time will eventually determine the long-term success and safety of these agents.