Gout is a form of arthritis characterized clinically by recurrent, paroxysmal, acute attacks of severe inflammation usually involving a single peripheral joint, followed by complete remission.
It´s more commonly affects men and results from the deposition of crystals in and about the joints of monosodium urate from hyperuricemic body fluids that are supersaturated with urate.
The primary biochemical requirement for development of clinical gout is, therefore, hyperuricemia.
The monosodium urate deposits provide the characteristic pathology that differentiates gout from other forms of arthritis and from its prodromal state of hyperuricemia.
Though gouty arthritis accounts for 4 to 5 percent of all patients with arthritis seen in major civilian clinics in the United States, and the incidence in the general population is around 0. 27 percent in -the United States and 0. 3 percent in Europe. There is lacking the information of the incidence in the general population in this country.
Though the clinical reports of gouty arthritis was also a few in this country, we have seen thirty-eight cases with gout in this hospital during these seven year´s period. All of them except three cases were male.
On the age incidence, the fourth decade was nearly 40% of all.
The serum uric acid levels in our gouty patients group ranged from 6.4 mg/dl to 16.9 mg/dl with mean value of 7.90+1.47 mg/dl which was significantly higher than those of normal controls.
The most common site of initial attack was in the great toe(podagra) and the next common involved at toes II~IV, finger, and ankle. Involvement of wrist and knee, however, was a few.
Fifty-seven percent in our cases affected multiple joints. Concerning to the predisposing factors of the disease, more amount of the protein ingestion and/or alcohol consumption seemed to be increased the attack.
The associated conditions with this disease were as eighteen cases with obesity, sixteen hypertension, six diabetes mellitus, two myocardial infarction, one nephrolithiasis and an erythroleukemmia, respectively.
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