Gout Treatment, Diet, Cause, Symptoms, Definition & Medication

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• Main Article On Gout Symptoms And Signs
• Who Gets Gout?
• Gout
• Related Health Topics

Your later attacks may be more severe, last longer, and involve more than one joint. If caught and treated early, people with gout can live a relatively normal life. Some patients do not respond to treatment because they fail to follow protocols, have alcoholism, or are undertreated by physicians. The crystallization of uric acid, often related to relatively high levels in the blood, is the underlying cause of gout.

Older age – Gout rarely occurs in children and is more common among middle-aged adults and the elderly. Family history – Gout often runs in families and there may be a genetic predisposition to developing hyperuricemia and gout. tebutate, can be injected using the same needle that is used to remove fluid from the joint.

Main Article On Gout Symptoms And Signs

Some experience pain so intense that even the light touch of a bed sheet on the joint is excruciating. These painful attacks can last from hours to several days. In cases of chronic inflammation, the attack may last for weeks.

Who Gets Gout?

Crystal deposits on tendons can cause the skin to wear down, which can lead to infection. In addition, tendons can tear, which can lead to loss of function. There are medicines, splints, and compression modalities to help swelling and lessen the gout pain. If your gouthas worn out the joints, or if tendons have been hurt, surgery may be needed. The diagnosis for gout is made based on a physical examination by your doctor, x-rays, and lab tests. You will be asked about your symptoms and how gout has changed your activities.

What is the root cause of gout?

Gout is caused initially by an excess of uric acid in the blood, or hyperuricemia. Uric acid is produced in the body during the breakdown of purines – chemical compounds that are found in high amounts in certain foods such as meat, poultry, and seafood.

In addition to following your doctor's treatment plan, there are choices you can make to prevent gout attacks and future joint damage. Your doctor may also prescribe corticosteroids for acute gout attacks. These are strong anti-inflammatory medications that can be taken either in pill form, intravenously, or injected into the painful joint.

The cutoff where patients with gout seem to dramatically reduce their number of attacks is when their uric acid level is taken below 6.0 mg/dL. In the past, high doses of colchicine were used for gout attacks, but this tended to cause diarrhea in a large number of patients. It has been shown that lower doses of colchicine are as effective as high doses for an attack of gout, and much better tolerated.

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Gout is extremely painful and sometimes hard to control. In patients with chronic undertreated gout crystals can be found in uric acid deposits that can damage joints & can appear under the skin. Corticosteroids, such as prednisone, methylprednisolone, and triamcinolone, are useful options for patients who cannot take NSAIDs. Given orally or by injection into the muscle, these medicines can be very effective in treating gout attacks. If only one or two joints are involved, your doctor can inject a corticosteroid directly into your joint.

According to a 2012 study, people with gout who ate the most purine-rich foods were almost five times as likely to have an attack than those who ate the lowest amount of purine-rich foods. The Boston University researchers also found that the impact from animal products were much larger than that of plant products. While doctors previously recommended avoiding plant-based foods that are rich in purines, some now believe they are safe to eat for people with gout. Flares usually begin at night and can last several days. It is unclear what causes a flare to stop; the body likely turns off the inflammation response after a certain period of time. During a flare, individuals can experience throbbing or burning pain, swelling, warmth, redness, and difficulty moving the affected joint.

Talk to your healthcare provider about medications that can reduce uric acid levels. They can also discuss changes you can make to your diet and lifestyle to prevent and reduce gout attacks. Patients who have repeated gout flares, abnormally high levels of blood uric acid, or tophi or kidney stones should strongly consider medicines to lower blood uric acid levels. These medications do not help the painful flares of acute gout, so most patients should start taking them after acute attacks subside.

Because medications and other diseases can cause gout, you will be asked to provide a medical history and a medication list. Eating too much of these may increase uric acid levels in some people. These types of medications are used to reduce uric acid levels to less than 6 mg/dL. People with tophi may have a greater benefit with levels that are less than 5 mg/dL. Over-the-counter non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medicines. If the gout attack is mild, anti-inflammatory drugs available without a prescription may relieve pain.

At a pH of 7, more than 90 percent of uric acid exists as monosodium urate. If you suddenly develop a painful, red, hot joint, see a physician as soon as possible. While the diagnosis may be gout, it could also be an infected joint. Best Exercises If You Have Arthritis Do you suffer from the stiffness and achiness of arthritis?

If excessive uric acid is produced by the body or if uric acid is not eliminated effectively by the kidneys, it can form deposits of crystals in the joints. If the blood uric acid is high but a person has never had an attack of gout, treatment is rarely needed. But people with extremely elevated levels may need regular testing for signs of kidney damage. And they may need long-term treatment to lower their uric acid levels. Your blood uric acid level may be watched by your doctor until it is lowered to normal levels. Gout is a form of arthritis caused by a buildup of uric acid crystals in the joints.

These flares are followed by long periods of remission—weeks, months, or years—without symptoms before another flare begins. Along with the big toe, joints that are commonly affected are the lesser toe joints, the ankle, and the knee. Once joint fluid is obtained, it is analyzed for uric acid crystals and infection. Low-dose aspirin and some medications used to control hypertension — including thiazide diuretics, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and beta blockers — also can increase uric acid levels. So can the use of anti-rejection drugs prescribed for people who have undergone an organ transplant.

Care for other conditions or complications that happen with gout. Before adjusting your diet you should consult a medical professional. A person can learn more about foods to eat and foods to avoid with gout. Gout can also attack joints such as the elbows and knees. As gout progresses, you may not be able to move your joints normally.

At first, gout occurrences usually get better within a few days. As time goes on, the occurrences last longer and happen more often. Some doctors suspect that eating dairy might help prevent gout attacks. Older research found a link between eating more low-fat dairy products and having lower uric acid levels, but experts don’t entirely understand why that might be.

Pain And Symptoms

Joint fluid test, in which the doctor uses a needle to draw a sample of fluid from the affected joint and evaluate it for uric acid crystals, which can be directly visualized using a microscope. Crystals may also be found under the skin in deposits known as tophi, which indicate advanced gout. Because the symptoms of gout can mimic those of other types of arthritis, an accurate diagnosis is a critical step toward finding effective gout treatment. Your primary care provider will likely refer you to a rheumatologist, a doctor who specializes in various types of arthritis, to make a gout diagnosis and discuss treatment options.