About Gout
Knowing what causes painful gout flares can help you better diagnose gout in your patients.
What is gout?
Nearly 5 million Americans suffer from gout4
- Gout is a form of inflammatory arthritis caused by hyperuricemia due to the crystallization of uric acid within joints and soft tissues5-7
- Hyperuricemia (average serum urate >6.5 mg/dL) is the single most important risk factor in the development of the disease
- It typically presents with nocturnal symptoms, building over several hours to a peak and causing intense joint pain, redness, and swelling5-7
- In most cases, only 1 joint is affected, the first metatarsophalangeal joint (or the big toe)5-7
Who is at risk?
- Because men have higher serum urate levels than premenopausal women, they’re at an increased risk for developing gout8
- Increasing age is also a factor, with prevalence peaking in males between 75 and 84 years and increasing for women over 608
Contributing factors5-7,9
- Advancing age, especially in males (gout affects 3 times as many men than women)
- Obesity
- Family history of gout
- Excessive alcohol consumption
- Certain medications, including diuretics, low-dose aspirin, cyclosporine, levodopa
- Organ transplants
- Lead toxicity
- Thyroid problems
- Chronic renal failure
- Coronary heart disease
- Diabetes
- Hypertriglyceridemia