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Chronic gouty arthritis   

Overview | Symptoms | Treatment | Prevention

Alternative names:

Gout - chronic; Gouty arthritis - chronic

Symptoms

• An attack of chronic gout is similar to an attack of acute gouty arthritis. Symptoms come on suddenly, usually involving only one or a few joints. The pain frequently starts during the night and is often described as throbbing, crushing, or excruciating. The affected joints show signs of warmth, redness, and tenderness. The pain tends to subside within several days. Chronic gout attacks, however, occur more often.
• If several attacks of gout occur each year this may cause chronic symptoms such as joint deformity and limitation of motion in affected joints. Uric acid deposits called tophi develop in cartilage tissue, tendons, and soft tissues. These tophi usually develop only after patients have suffered from the disease for many years. Deposits also can occur in the kidneys, leading to chronic renal failure.

Signs and Tests

There may be a current or previous medical history of acute arthritis in one joint. A physical examination of joints shows arthritis and tophi.

Tests that indicate gouty arthritis include:

• synovial fluid analysis that detects uric acid crystals
• elevated uric acid level
• joint X-rays which show damage consistent with gouty arthritis

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