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Uric Acid
Formal name: Uric Acid
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Common Questions
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1. If I have high levels of uric acid, can they be lowered easily or will I have to take drugs for the rest of my life?
2. What is gout?
3. I heard women don’t get gout. Is that true?
1. If I have high levels of uric acid, can they be lowered easily or will I have to take drugs for the rest of my life?
Depending on the condition that causes your high levels of uric acid, you may not need to take drugs. If you have a sudden attack caused by high uric acid, as with an attack of gout, your doctor may treat you with the drug colchicine and a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, such as aspirin or ibuprofen. This treatment usually is short-term.
However, you may have to stay on a maintenance therapy for a few years, until your uric acid levels come under control. You may be given drugs that help to rid your system of uric acid salts, such as probenecid, or you may be given drugs that interfere with uric acid production, such as allopurinol. If you have had chemotherapy or radiation, you may have to take uric acid tests more often and possibly treat the condition over time.
2. What is gout?
Gout is one of the most common forms of arthritis. A gout attack usually happens at night, and within 12 or so hours there may be severe pain and swelling in the joint. Gout usually affects only one or two joints at the same time, typically in the feet and ankles. It often occurs in the big toe, and people can notice it at night when their bedding rubs on their toe and causes extreme pain. Gout happens when crystals derived from uric acid accumulate in the joints. These crystals cause inflammation.
Without treatment, an early attack of gout usually goes away in a week. It may be months or years until the next attack. As time goes on, more joints can become affected and the disease may cause disabilities or eventually cripple the patient, according to the American College of Rheumatology. That is why it is important to get treated right away if you think you may have gout. Your doctor will order a uric acid test and may have to take fluid from the joint through a needle to look for the microscopic crystals.
3. I heard women don’t get gout. Is that true?
No. Gout affects mostly men, and it is very rare in women until after menopause, the time in life when a woman’s monthly period stops.
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This article was last reviewed on
August 5, 2006.
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