Blood lab results indicating gout

by Nathan Wei, MD, FACP, FACR

Nathan Wei is a board-certified rheumatologist and author of the Second Opinion Arthritis Treatment Kit. It's available exclusively at this website... not available in stores.

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Uric acid is the end product of the breakdown of purines in your body. Purines are an important component of proteins. A high level of uric acid in your blood may cause gout arthritis or kidney stones.

The level of uric acid in the blood is affected by a diet rich in purines - foods such as kidney, liver, pancreas, and sweetbreads. Kidney disease, stress, alcohol and certain diuretics may raise the level.

High levels should be evaluated by your healthcare professional. Low values are generally not considered significant.

The serum uric acid test is helpful in monitoring the extent of hyperuricemia in patients with gout requiring treatment.

The prevalence of asymptomatic hyperuricemia among men is 5%8%, and fewer than 1 in 3 people with hyperuricemia will ever develop gout.

Asymptomatic hyperuricemia does not confer a diagnosis of gout and need not be treated unless serum uric acid levels are persistently above 760 µmol/L (12.8 mg/dL) for men or 600 µmol/L (10.0 mg/dL) for women. At these levels there is an increased risk of renal complication.

Serum uric acid testing is often ordered for the patient with acute monoarthritis. Unfortunately, this will not be helpful in the diagnosis because of the high prevalence of asymptomatic hyperuricemia and the fact that, in 10% of patients with acute gout, serum uric acid levels are normal.

A diagnosis of acute gout can only be made with certainty by joint aspiration to confirm the presence of urate crystals under polarized light.

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