Ankylosing spondylitis and genitourinary infection.

One hundred and thirty-four male and 32 female patients with ankylosing spondylitis and 33 women with pure ileitis terminalis Crohn were examined. The study protocol included a medical-rheumatological examination and thorough investigation for genitourinary infection. Urethroadnexitis was found in 37/134 male patients (2 patients suffered from balanitis, 17 patients from urethritis, 18 patients from prostatitis, and 2 patients from epididymitis), 15/32 female patients (11 of them had urethritis and in 4 cases urethritis associated with vaginitis) and 5/33 women with ileitis terminalis (every case with urethritis). The microorganism isolated most frequently from patients with genitourinary infection was Chlamydia trachomatis. The majority of patients with genitourinary infection were HLA-B27 positive. Nevertheless, the following conclusions can be reached: (1) evidence of Chlamydia trachomatis infection is frequent in male and female patients with ankylosing spondylitis, (2) patients with genitourinary infection tend to have HLA-B27, and (3) furthermore, presence of genitourinary infection was not significantly associated with chronic illness.