Seronegative spondyloarthropathies (seronegative spondyloarthritides) share certain clinical characteristics (eg, inflammatory back pain, uveitis, gastrointestinal symptoms, rashes). Some are strongly associated with the human leukocyte antigen B27 (HLA-B27) allele. Clinical and genetic similarities suggest that they also share similar causes or pathophysiologies. Rheumatoid factor (RF) is usually negative in the spondyloarthropathies (hence, why they are called seronegative spondyloarthropathies). They include ankylosing spondylitis Ankylosing Spondylitis Ankylosing spondylitis is the prototypical spondyloarthropathy and a systemic disorder characterized by inflammation of the axial skeleton, large peripheral joints, and digits; nocturnal back... read more 
, reactive arthritis Reactive Arthritis Reactive arthritis is an acute spondyloarthropathy that often seems precipitated by an infection, usually genitourinary or gastrointestinal. Common manifestations include asymmetric arthritis... read more 
, psoriatic arthritis Psoriatic Arthritis Psoriatic arthritis is a spondyloarthropathy and chronic inflammatory arthritis that occurs in people with psoriasis of the skin or nails. The arthritis is often asymmetric, and some forms involve... read more 
, and other disorders.
Spondyloarthropathy can develop in association with gastrointestinal conditions (sometimes called enteropathic arthritis) such as inflammatory bowel disease Overview of Inflammatory Bowel Disease Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which includes Crohn disease and ulcerative colitis, is a relapsing and remitting condition characterized by chronic inflammation at various sites in the gastrointestinal... read more , intestinal bypass surgery Bariatric Surgery Bariatric surgery is the surgical alteration of the stomach, intestine, or both to cause weight loss. In the US, about 250,000 bariatric operations are done in each year. Development of safer... read more , or Whipple disease Whipple Disease Whipple disease is a rare systemic illness caused by the bacterium Tropheryma whipplei. Main symptoms are arthritis, weight loss, abdominal pain, and diarrhea. Diagnosis is by small-bowel... read more .
Juvenile-onset spondyloarthropathy is an asymmetric, mostly lower extremity spondyloarthropathy that begins most commonly in boys aged 7 to 16.
Spondyloarthropathy can also develop in people without characteristics of other specific spondyloarthropathies (undifferentiated spondyloarthropathy). Treatment of the arthritis of these other spondyloarthropathies is similar to the treatment of reactive arthritis Treatment Reactive arthritis is an acute spondyloarthropathy that often seems precipitated by an infection, usually genitourinary or gastrointestinal. Common manifestations include asymmetric arthritis... read more .
