What Is Gout? Symptoms, Causes, Diagnosis, Treatment, And Prevention

Content

• What Are Symptoms Of Gout?
• Explore Rheumatology
• Treatment
• What Are The Treatments For Gout?
• Myth: If You Stay Away From Liver And Alcohol, You'll Avoid Gout Attacks

Fortunately, it is possible to treat gout and reduce its very painful attacks by avoiding food and medication triggers and by taking medicines that can help. However, diagnosing gout can be hard, and treatment plansoften must be tailored for each person. Urate-lowering medications are the primary treatment for gout. These medications decrease the total amount of uric acid in the body and lower the serum uric acid level. For most patients, the goal of uric-acid-lowering medication is to achieve a serum uric acid level of less than 6 mg/dl. These medications also are effective treatments to decrease the size of tophi, with the ultimate goal of eradicating them.

Elevated levels of uric acid may also lead to crystals precipitating in the kidneys, resulting in stone formation and subsequent urate nephropathy. To diagnose gout, a doctor will typically measure the uric acid level in your blood and study your symptoms. The doctor will need to rule out other reasons for the joint pain and inflammation such as an infection, injury or other type of arthritis. The doctor may also take an X-ray, do an ultrasound or order a magnetic resonance imaging scan to examine soft tissue and bone.

What Are Symptoms Of Gout?

Another drawback to probenecid is that it has to be taken twice a day. Finally, gout does run in some families and we know that certain genes increase the risk of gout. The result is an impressive dossier on the risk factors for gout, at least as they pertain to men. Learn more about the CDC-recommended self-management education programs. These flares are followed by long periods of remission—weeks, months, or years—without symptoms before another flare begins.

Explore Rheumatology

When the gout episodes are infrequent, an NSAID or colchicine can be used as needed. For more frequent gout episodes, other medications can be given that are managed by your primary care doctor or a rheumatologist. Gout crystals can form white bumps called “tophi,” which are often visible under the skin .

This condition is chronic and progressive, but highly treatable. Colchicine can reduce inflammation and pain if you take it within 24 hours of a gout attack. If you have sudden or severe pain in a joint, you should talk to your primary care provider . Your PCP may send you to a rheumatologist, a doctor who specializes in gout and other kinds of arthritis. Primary care providers , such as internists, who specialize in the diagnosis and medical treatment of adults.

Treatment

The symptoms then typically get better within a few days to weeks. It is not clear how the body “turns off” a gout attack. Uric acid is an end product of the breakdown of purines, compounds found in all body tissues and in many foods, such as liver, dried beans, asparagus, mushrooms, and anchovies. Uric acid is normally carried through the blood and eliminated in the urine. When the crystals accumulate in the joints, they can cause the pain associated with gout.

Does walking on gout make it worse?

There's very little evidence that suggests coffee intake causes gout or increases the risk of a gout flare-up. Although the majority of evidence is in favor of drinking coffee to reduce gout risk, there's still room to continue to expand the research.

Gout is genetically inherited and affects men more than women by a ratio of about 3 to 1. Cleveland Clinic offers expert diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation for bone, joint or connective tissue disorders and rheumatic and immunologic diseases. If you experience sudden, intense pain in a joint, call a healthcare provider right away. If the joint is hot and inflamed, you might have gout — or you might have another problem like an infection.

What Are The Treatments For Gout?

Taking vitamin C and eating a diet high in low-fat dairy products may be preventive. Not drinking alcohol excessively is good for your overall health, and “a positive step toward gout management,” says Dr. Bose, as alcohol molecules tend to increase uric acid levels. A 2018 review published in the Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition Researchers analyzed 19 studies that evaluated dietary factors and risk of gout.

Gout is more common after surgery, trauma, and dehydration. Certain medications such as diuretics , which treat high blood pressure, that raise the level of uric acid in the bloodstream are risks for gout. Surprisingly, medications that lower the level of uric acid in the bloodstream, such as allopurinol , can also initially cause a flare of gout. This is because anything that raises or lowers the uric acid level can cause a gout flare by causing uric acid crystals to deposit in a joint. The treatment of certain types of cancer can cause gout because of high levels of uric acid released when the cancer cells are destroyed.

When Will My Gout Attack Be Over?

They can shorten the attack, especially if taken in the first 24 hours. Learn about the four most common warning signs.Article Gout Gout is an inflammatory type of arthritis that more commonly affects men. This condition and its complications occur more often in men, women after menopause, and people with kidney disease. Gout is strongly linked to obesity, hypertension , hyperlipidemia and diabetes.

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