ABSTRACT
In spite of the great advances in medicine, there is no effective conservative or operative method that can succeed in halting the ankylosing process in the spine of ankylosing spondylitis (AS) patients. Moreover, there is no known effective joint replacement in the field of the spine that can restore part of the lost spinal movements in those patients. The main role of surgery is in restoring a balanced spine by recreating an acceptable sagittal contour.
