Chinese Herbal Medicine For Gout

Content

• Dietary Modifications
• The Pharmacological Mechanism Of Quzhuo Tongbi Decoction In The Treatment Of Gout

Rates are high among Pacific Islanders and the Māori, but the disease is rare in aboriginal Australians, despite a higher mean uric acid serum concentration in the latter group. It has become common in China, Polynesia, and urban sub-Saharan Africa. Some studies found that attacks of gout occur more frequently in the spring. This has been attributed to seasonal changes in diet, alcohol consumption, physical activity, and temperature.

To control the acute attack, NSAIDs are prescribed at full dosage for 2-5 days. the dosage is reduced to approximately one half to one fourth of that amount. Gout symptoms should be absent for at least 2 days before the NSAID is discontinued. When comorbid conditions limit the use of NSAIDs or colchicine, a preferred option may be an intra-articular steroid injection, particularly when a large, easily accessible joint is involved.

Dietary Modifications

Once you've reached your goal blood uric acid level, you likely will need to continue taking allopurinol or febuxostat long term to prevent future gout attacks. These people can have frequent gout attacks, and the attacks generally last longer than the initial attack. People with frequent gout attacks can go on to develop chronic gout, and these people will most likely experience joint damage. They’ll have to take medications long-term to prevent gout attacks.

The Pharmacological Mechanism Of Quzhuo Tongbi Decoction In The Treatment Of Gout

Febuxostat, a nonpurine selective inhibitor of xanthine oxidase, is a potential alternative to allopurinol in patients with gout. Febuxostat is administered orally and is metabolized mainly in the liver. In contrast, allopurinol and its metabolites are excreted primarily by the kidney. Therefore, febuxostat can be used in patients with renal impairment with no dosage adjustment.

Factors that influence rates of gout include age, race, and the season of the year. A definitive diagnosis of gout is based upon the identification of monosodium urate crystals in synovial fluid or a tophus. All synovial fluid samples obtained from undiagnosed inflamed joints by arthrocentesis should be examined for these crystals. Under polarized light microscopy, they have a needle-like morphology and strong negative birefringence.

It helps to relieve the pain and swelling of acute attacks. Colchicine’s most common side effects are diarrhea, nausea and abdominal cramp, but more severe side attacks can occur. Like all gout medications, it has been shown to be most effective if taken at the first signs of a gout attack. Corticosteroids can be taken by mouth or injected into an inflamed joint to relieve the pain and swelling of an acute gout attack. They can also be injected systemically if the attack doesn’t respond to other medications or if many joints are affected. Injection of adrenocorticotropic hormone , a synthetic drug that stimulates the body to produce corticosteroids naturally, can help treat a gout attack.

Drug hypersensitivity syndrome is rare but potentially very severe. It usually occurs within the first 6 weeks of therapy but some cases have been reported up to 12 weeks after starting allopurinol. Urate levels may be elevated in the blood, but this finding alone is not diagnostic. In some cases, the level may even be below urate saturation. Most people who have gout will need to be on a uric-acid-lowering drug for life, usually just one or two pills a day, says George Washington University's Baraf. As many as 8 million people in the United States have gout.

These lumps may be painful and swollen, and they can permanently damage your joints. This test combines X-ray images taken from many different angles to visualize urate crystals in joints. Your doctor may use a needle to draw fluid from your affected joint. Urate crystals may be visible when the fluid is examined under a microscope. If your pain isn't too bad, try cold packs or compresses on the joint to lower inflammation and soothe the ache. Wrap ice in a thin towel and apply it to the joint for up to 20 minutes several times a day.

New episodes of gout are often treated with non-steroidal anti-inflammatory medication or a medicine called colchicine. Uric acid does not show up on x-rays, but some bone changes can be visible with gout . If needed, fluid from the joint can be removed with a needle to confirm the gout diagnosis. Blood tests may be ordered to check for infection as well to check your uric acid levels. AllopurinolThis medication decreases the formation of uric acid by the body and is a very reliable way to lower the blood uric acid level.

Acute gout is a painful condition that often affects only one joint. Chronic gout is the repeated episodes of pain and inflammation. Dietary causes account for about 12% of gout, and include a strong association with the consumption of alcohol, sugar-sweetened beverages, meat, and seafood. Among foods richest in purines yielding high amounts of uric acid are dried anchovies, shrimp, organ meat, dried mushrooms, seaweed, and beer yeast.

Is chicken foot high in uric acid?

For people with gout and hyperuricemia, the amount of total purines and the types of purines consumed, particularly hypoxanthine, are important considerations. Chicken is mostly a moderate-purine food, but the amount of purines in cuts do range from low to very high.

Some foods like red meat, alcohol, and high-fructose corn syrup in sodas can raise your risks. Limiting foods that cause gout in your diet can protect you from this painful joint condition, a type of arthritis. Like allopurinol, the most common side-effect of febuxostat is causing gout to flare after this drug is started.

Most gout attacks will go away by themselves in several weeks, even without treatment. There are several other conditions, such as a joint infection, that have some of the same symptoms as gout attacks. Your doctor may prescribe nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as celecoxib, indomethacin, meloxicam, or sulindac or suggest you take over-the-counter NSAIDs, like naproxen or ibuprofen. Depending on your medical history, your doctor may prescribe steroids or other medicines to reduce inflammation, such as colchicine . He’s now on low doses of medication, now with few side effects, eats a plant-based diet that includes very little sugar or alcohol, and gets his blood checked every six months.

Points To Remember About Gout

More than 8 million people in the United States have gout. Although more expensive than allopurinol, febuxostat is an option for patients who cannot take probenecid or allopurinol. 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.