Maternal age and family history are risk factors for ankylosing spondylitis.

Objective: To investigate prevalence and gender distribution in parents of children with ankylosing spondylitis (AS).

Methods: Family history of AS (parents, uncles, and aunts), maternal age at delivery, and consecutive pregnancy number were assessed in the relatives of 40 Mexican Mestizo patients with definite AS (New York Criteria).

Results: We evaluated the family history of AS in 34 families of 40 AS patients; 12 with none, 4 with a paternal history (4 healthy fathers with a brother with AS) (odds ratio, OR, 1.

[Risk factors associated with systemic lupus erythematosis in a Mexican population].

Objective: To assess risk factors associated with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) in the Mexican population.

Material And Methods: A case-control study was conducted on June 1996, at the Reumathology Clinic of Hospital de Especialidades del Centro Médico Nacional Siglo XXI (HE CMN), Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social, in Mexico City. Cases were one hundred thirty subjects with four or more SLE criteria and disease evolution of +/- 5 years.

Takayasu's arteritis.

The frequency of Takayasu's arteritis (TA) has been estimated to be 2.9 cases per 1 million people, with a female preponderance, although female-to-male ratio varies from different geographic areas. A high frequency of haplotype A24-B52-DR2 has been found in Japanese patients, without this association in other populations.