Objective To preliminarily explore the clinical characteristics of patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) using Hitales platform (a clinical data analysis platform). Methods The clinical data (14 220 medical records) of 2 692 AS patients, who were admitted in The First or Second Affiliated Hospitals of Naval Medical University (Second Military Medical University) from Jan. 2005 to Jun. 2018, were retrospectively analyzed. The demographic data, human leukocyte antigen-B27 (HLA-B27) examination results, clinical characteristics (first symptom, axial joint and peripheral joint involvement), special manifestations and medication were collected through Hitales platform. Results The AS patients included 2 094 males and 598 females. The male to female ratio was 3.5:1. The onset age of male patients was significantly younger than that of female patients ([28.27±12.94] years vs[33.46±14.01] years, P<0.01), and the average diagnosis time of patients over 45 years old was significantly shorter than those of patients of <21 years and 21-45 years (0.63[0.00, 5.37] years vs 0.92[0.20, 6.91] years and 1.87[0.10, 7.13] years, both P<0.01). The positive rates of HLA-B27 in female and male AS patients were similar, which were 70.30% (715/1 017) and 70.16% (221/315), respectively. There were no significant differences in the onset age or diagnosis time between HLA-B27 negative and positive patients (both P>0.05). The first symptom was axial joint symptom in 61.29% (1 650/2 692) of AS patients, and the patients with peripheral joint symptom were younger. The incidence of hip involvement in male AS patients was higher than that in female patients (8.17%[171/2 094] vs 4.68%[28/598], P<0.01). Hypertension was the most common complication in AS patients (19.66%, 209/1 063). The proportion of osteoporosis in female AS patients was higher than that in male patients (13.26%[35/264] vs 7.76%[62/799], P<0.01). Of the 2 692 AS patients, 2 602 (96.66%) were controlled by drugs, and 2 062 patients (79.25%) used non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Conclusion The incidence of AS is high in young men, hypertension is the most common complication, and female AS patients are more likely to suffer from osteoporosis than male AS patients. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are still widely used as the first-line treatment drugs of AS.