Annals of the rheumatic diseases
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To compare the performance of two different MRI sequences-T(1) weighted, fat saturated, spin echo after application of contrast medium, and short tau inversion recovery (STIR) sequences-to detect spinal inflammation in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS). ⋯ Both MRI techniques can evaluate active spinal lesions in patients with AS. More spinal lesions are detected by the STIR sequence, but the reliability between readings and readers is better for the Gd-DTPA sequence. The ASspiMRI-a is a reliable instrument for evaluating acute spinal changes in AS.