What Exactly Is Gout?

Far from the new disease on the block, gout has been plaguing people throughout history. Indeed, diagnosed for over 2,000 years, Gout is considered one of our longest-known diseases.

Throughout much of that history, gout was considered the “disease of kings," primarily because it was thought to be a result of overindulgence of fatty foods and alcohol.

Modern science has shown us that—while such overindulgence can definitely heighten the risk of gout—anybody can be affected by the pain of gout.

Gout is a form of arthritis that often sneaks up in the middle of the night (we'll explain why it usually occurs at night later - it's the key to curing gout), suddenly attacking your joints with a deep, persistent pain.

Gout most often results when needle-like crystals of uric acid form in the body’s connective tissue or lodge themselves in the space between two bones (i.e., in the joints).

These uric acid crystals inflame the surrounding area and lead to inflammatory arthritis.

This inflammatory arthritis is responsible for heat, pain, redness, stiffness, and swelling commonly associated with attacks of gout.

What are the Symptoms of Gout?

The #1 biggest symptom of gout is extreme pain, swelling, throbbing and heat in the joint of your big toe.

If you've never had gout before, you might not understand how easy it is for doctors to diagnose gout.

Your doctor can do a test for the presence of uric acid crystals in your joint fluid (by taking a sample of the fluid in the affected joint), but most likely he will recognize the unique symptoms to diagnose that you do indeed have gout.

Other symptoms of gout include:

• Multiple attacks of acute arthritis

• Arthritis attacks that develop over the course of an extremely quick time (e.g., over the span of 12-24 hours with inflamed, painful, red, and hot joints)

• Arthritis attack that affects only one joint; most often affecting the toe, ankle, or knee. The first attack of gout most often affects the joints of the big toe. In fact, gout is thought to affect the big toe of 75% of all patients during the course of the disease.

Additionally, the affects of gout can be found in other joints such as the elbows, fingers, heels, instep, and wrists.

If you experience any of the above signs or symptoms, it is very possible that you are suffering from gout. A visit to your doctor can quickly confirm if you are indeed afflicted with gout and can begin your process toward healing.

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Who Gets Gout?

The most typical victim of gout is male, over 35, and at least somewhat overweight.

Gout affects nearly 1% of the world's population. Gout is responsible for nearly 5% of all arthritis sufferers.

But anybody can get Gout!

Research has shown that 1 out of every 4 people with gout actually has a family history of gout...

While the genetic component is not currently fully understood, researchers are hopeful that such information will greatly impact the early diagnosis and prevention of gout in the future.

Because men tend to have higher levels of uric acid in their bodies to begin with, gout affects more men than women. However, after menopause, a woman’s uric acid level actually rises to be comparable to a man’s level.

In addition, age seems to play a role in the onset of gout. Men typically develop gout between the ages of 30 and 50. Women, on the other hand, rarely develop symptoms until they are 50 and older. Very few cases of gout have been diagnosed in children and young adults.

Please remember that this site is for information purposes only - always seek medical advice for gout and any other medical condition.

A helpful guide to gout can be viewed here.

 Read Gout Attack on Hubpages!