Alexithymia and self-esteem in patients with ankylosing spondylitis/Ankilozan spondilitli hastalarda aleksitimi ve benlik saygisi

Introduction: Ankylosing spondylitis (AS), which has an unknown etiology, inflammatory disorder, characterized by inflammation of the spinal joints and adjacent structures. It has a negative effect on all aspects of a patient's life: Physically, psychologically and socially. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of AS on self- esteem and alexithymia. Method: In this study, 50 patients from the department of physical therapy and rehabilitation with the diagnosis of AS who were under treatment and follow-up and 50 healthy volunteers who matched for age and gender were taken. Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (RSES), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Disease Activity Index (BASDAI) were performed to both patients and control group. Results: Compared to the control group, the anxiety and depression scores were higher in the patient group and the alexithymic characteristics were significantly higher, self-esteem scores were significantly lower in the patient group (p