Gout Crystals: Formation and Outcome

By Judith Allison

When a person is suffering from uric gout, their symptoms include pain in the joints, tightness and stiffness in the joints, and sometimes difficulty in moving those joints. This condition occurs when the levels of uric acid in the body reach unhealthy levels and gout crystals begin to develop and harden around the joints.

This most commonly effects the joints in the big toe, but can also effect the finger joints, knee joints, elbow joints, and joints in the ankles. If this condition is note treated properly, it can result in loss of mobility of any joints that have been diagnosed as having gout crystals around them.

Managing uric acid levels in the body can be done in several ways. These acid levels increase in the body due to eating too many foods that are rich in purine such as meats, certain seafood, and sweetbreads. Certain high purine, high caffeine drinks can also cause uric gout flare-ups.

If a person has the early stages of gout, a change of diet frequently relieves the pain and stiffness in the joints fairly quickly. Symptoms of gout can quickly disappear if you eliminate high purine foods and beverages from your diet and drink plenty of water; this helps flush the uric acid from your body.

If changing your diet does not relieve all gout symptoms, it may be necessary to take medications that are specially made to break up gout crystals. Mild medications such as NSAIDS may offer relief, but it is common for stronger medications, such as colchicine and probenecid, to be necessary to ensure all of the crystallization is dissolved away.

These more intense drugs, such as colchicine or probenecid, have a much higher success rate and often dissolve all the uric acid crystals, making your gout symptoms disappear. Taking these drugs is basically the same as putting poison into your body, however, and many people who take them experience terrible side effects like nausea and vomiting. If you have any of these side effects it is essential that you notify your physician immediately. Depending on how bad your side effects are, your doctor may decide to prescribe a different drug.

Some patients who are being treated for gout crystals around their joints find that exercise gives them tremendous relief. By moving and flexing the area of the body affected by gout, crystals can be broken up and will dissolve more easily. It is also very important to drink lots of fluids during exercise to help uric acids to leave the body when you perspire from working out. If you can exercise regularly it can be a more natural way to keep uric acids levels down and prevent a recurrence of gout flareups.

It is also important to be aware if there is any family history of gout. Most likely if a parent or grandparent suffered from this condition, you have a possibility of also acquiring it. Be proactive in controlling your diet and cutting back on foods that are rich in purines. Drink plenty of water to encourage the flushing out of uric acid in your system. Also, start a regular exercise routine to help promote flexibility and prevent the formation of gout crystals. - 30425

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