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The Hidden Cost of Gout
For many people, gout is viewed as an episodic disease: a painful flare, a short course of treatment, and then life returns to normal. However, as rheumatologists, we know that recurrent attacks can lead to joint damage and tophi if left untreated. Furthermore, the true burden of gout extends far beyond the musculoskeletal system.
Read ArticleSeronegative RA Disease Activity (7.17.2026)
Dr. Jack Cush reviews the news, journal articles and Gout features from this past week on RheumNow.com.
Read ArticleThe Marriage between Gout and the Kidney
While the link between uric acid and gout was first described by Alfred Baring Garrod in the 1800s, the proof that uric acid might actually be the cause had to await the self-experimentation of two rheumatologists from the University of Pennsylvania. Given some comments that the presence of urate crystals in synovial fluid might just be a bystander phenomenon, they decided to inject monosodium urate crystals in one knee and water in the other, and both suffered severe attacks of gout in the urate crystal injected knee.
Read ArticleGout in Minority Populations
Gout is the most common inflammatory arthritis, but its burden is not shared equally across populations. Recent research has revealed substantial racial and ethnic disparities in both who develops gout and the care patients receive. These differences reflect not only genetic susceptibility but also the substantial influence of social determinants of health, healthcare access, and environmental exposures.
Read ArticleWhy Do Gout Flares Start at Night?
The striking propensity for gout flares to initiate at night has been recognised for centuries. In 1683, Thomas Sydenham famously observed that the typical patient "goes to bed and sleeps in good health" only to be awakened around 2:00 AM by excruciating pain.
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