Spondylitis Resources and Information for Medical Professionals

At the Spondylitis Association of America, we share your goal of helping patients achieve optimum health. We would like to offer our support for and appreciation of your work and special interest in spondyloarthritis — a too often forgotten and widely underdiagnosed inflammatory rheumatic disease.

This section contains spondyloarthritis diagnostic information for primary care physicians; training for first responders on the modified protocols for handling someone with spondyloarthritis; and crucial information for chiropractors, who often see patients with undiagnosed spondyloarthritis and need to be aware of the greatly increased risk of spinal fracture in these patients.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) 2012 NHANES study, spondyloarthritis affects at least 3.2 million adults in the U.S. Though it is fairly common (more common than rheumatoid arthritis,) it is largely unknown by the medical community and frequently goes undiagnosed by physicians. The average delay in diagnosis for someone with any form of spondyloarthritis ranges seven to 10 years.

Our goals with this section are to raise awareness of spondyloarthritis among medical professionals and offer our assistance to you, as well as your patients.

We offer valuable resources for your spondyloarthritis patients, including physician vetted information, and patient educational and support programs, such as:

  • Free spondyloarthritis Seminars and Webinars, featuring knowledgeable rheumatologists and other medical professionals
  • In-person spondyloarthritis Support Groups
  • Online Support opportunities
  • Accurate and up-to-date spondyloarthritis information
  • The only News Magazine in the U.S. dedicated solely to spondyloarthritis
  • A toll-free information hotline (U.S. only)

CAPES: Clinician and Patient Education Series

SAA has partnered with SPARTAN, GRAPPA, and NPF to develop and present a series of webinars and podcasts for clinicians and patients, to provide in-depth education on spondyloarthritis (SpA), including psoriatic arthritis (PsA). As a collective group of nonprofit organizations committed to improving research and understanding of our respective diseases, we’re excited to bring you this unique, collaborative project!