| Abstrakt: |
The combined efforts of a clinician and a pathologist produced as exhaustive treatise packed with concentrated information on spondylitis ankylopoietica, also known as morbus Strümpell-Marie-Bechterew. Ott introduces the first part of the volume with the historical development of the clinical concept of this disease, its terminology, and the description of its classical appearance, whereby he equips the reader with the necessary knowledge and curiosity to absorb the contents of the volume with great interest. The examination of the patient, the characteristics of the onset and progress of the disease, the radiological findings— especially the changes on the sacroiliac joint—and the statistical data are worked out in the minutest details. With the exception of the increased sedimentation rate, the laboratory methods are considered insignificant in their diagnostic value. The disease is clearly differentiated from other degenerative, inflammatory, and metabolic diseases of the spine. Inheritance and infections as etiological factors are subjected |
