Gout Symptoms
Gout initially affects the joints in the big toe. Sometime during the course
of the disease, gout will affect the big toe in about 75 percent of patients. It
also can affect the instep, ankles, heels, knees, wrists, fingers, and elbows.
Gout is caused by an excessive blood level of uric acid, a waste product formed
from the breakdown of purines. These are substances found naturally in your body
as well as in certain foods, especially organ meats.
Gout Symptoms may include:
- Rapid increase in discomfort, lasting for some hours of the night and then easing during the next 2 to 7 days.
- Pain that starts during the night and is so intense that even light pressure
is intolerable.
- Warmth, pain, swelling, and extreme tenderness in a joint, usually a big toe joint. This symptom is called
podagra.
- As the gout attack subsides, the skin around the affected joint may peel and feel itchy.
Some people with gout develop a chronic form of arthritis, often with
discolored deposits under the skin called tophi. A small number of people with
gout develop kidney stones.
There's no sure way to prevent initial or subsequent attacks of gout, but if
you already have gout, your doctor may prescribe certain drugs to reduce the
risk or lessen the severity of future episodes.
Gout Symptoms to G
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