Ankylosing Spondylitis associated with intracranial aneurysms: report of 2 cases

Cerebral aneurysms are the major cause of subarachnoid hemorrhage. Common ascribed etiologies are hemodynamic factors such as atherosclerosis, hypertension, infection, trauma, polycyctic kidney disease, connective tissue disorders like Ehlers-Danlos disease, Marfan syndrome, and familial predisposition. However, its association with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is not clear. Here, we report 2 patients with AS who presented with subarachnoid hemorrhage which was finally confirmed to be due to cerebral aneurysms, one in posterior communicating artery and the other in basilar artery tip). The patients had no history of hypertension or any other disease. Our data may not strongly suggest that vascular changes due to AS are etiological factors for developing intracranial aneurysm, but this report may show the possibility for existence of an association between these diseases, which has to be confirmed by more genetic and pathologic studies.