Skip to content Skip to sidebar Skip to footer

What I need to know about Gout?

Gout is a form of acute arthritis that can cause severe joint swelling and pain. Gout usually affects the big toe, but it can also affect the ankle, heel and elbow. Gout arthritis can also cause back pain. It can be sudden and disappears within five to seven days. Gout is different than other forms of arthritis. It occurs when the blood levels of uric acids are high. This causes uric crystals to form in the joints. High levels of uric acid can cause urate crystals to slowly form in the joints.

Urate Crystals

Although urate crystals are not a cause of symptoms for long periods of time, they can trigger the symptoms of gout. These include infection, injury to the joints, eating the wrong food, excessive alcohol, and surgery. Common symptoms include tenderness, pain and swelling, as well as warmth, swelling, reddening of the joints, and heat. Gout attacks usually occur in the middle of the nights and cause severe pain.

Gout attack symptoms can include a dry, shiny, and red appearance to the skin. Gout arthritis attacks may recur more often than once symptoms have subsided. Gout arthritis affects approximately one million Americans. It is more common in men than in women.

Gout Symptoms

Gout symptoms can appear in the late thirties and early forties in men who go through puberty. This is because it takes 20 years of hyperuricemia before the symptoms of gouts begin to manifest. Gout usually develops in women in their sixties, but it can also occur later in life. Experts believe that urate crystals may form in the joints as estrogen levels fall during menopause.

This is because estrogen is known for its protection against hyperuricemia. Gout arthritis, as well as heart disease, can be caused by excessive alcohol consumption, excess bodyweight, medications for blood pressure, high serum triglycerides, and certain fatty substances. Gout can usually be diagnosed by doctors after a physical examination and a thorough medical history. Doctors can perform certain tests to determine the level of uric acid in the blood. Although gout can be caused by normal or high levels of uric acids, hyperuricemia can increase your risk of developing it.

Remember

Gout arthritis treatment tends to relieve pain, prevent future severe attacks, and prevent permanent damage to joints. Patients are advised to rest and increase fluid intake in addition to taking prescribed pain medication. Gout can also be treated with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug and nonaspirin. These drugs can aggravate peptic ulcer if a person has kidney disease.

 

Leave a comment