hypertension, lead poisoning, surgery etc... Complications can also arise from gout like
recurrent gout, advanced gout in which urate crystals may form under the skin in
nodules otherwise known as tophi, kidney stones may cause urate crystals to
accumulate in the urinary tract, gout may also spread to other joints and obviously
cause damage to the joints.
(^)
TThhee 44 SSttaaggeess ooff GGoouutt (^)
Medical professionals have broken down the development of gout in four stages, how
the disease can evolve over time. First stage is what they call Asymptomatic Gout the
stage where somebody develops hyperuricemia which is higher uric acid levels in the
blood, the body becomes increasingly acidic but no symptoms are present. At this stage,
uric acid crystallizes and silently accumulates in the joint. Treatment is not required at
this stage and no medication is required but if you do find out by taking a blood test,
that you do suffer from hyperuricemia, a change in your diet should take place
immediately.
Second stage is the very first gout attack. What they call Acute Gout or Acute Gouty
Arthritis. Yes your first time comes to a shock and is excruciatingly painful causing
severe inflammation and severe pain in the joint. Before that night where you got your
gout attack, you consumed something like seafood, organ meat, had too many Cokes or
a night of drinking that raised your uric acid levels which triggered your gout attack.
Even stress or the presence of another illness can cause it too! The pain will escalate
over the next 8 to 12 hours making walking very difficult. Generally, this gout attack will
be in the big toe area and will feel like a broken foot. The inflamed area will be reddish
and you can experience a slight fever or even chills. You should find some relief after
three days but symptoms can hang around up to 10 days and sometimes even longer.
These attacks can then become more severe and prolonged if nothing is done about
them. The next acute attack can take months or more than a year to reoccur. Over time,
however, attacks can last longer and occur more frequently.
Next up is the third stage, what they call Intercritical Gout or Interval Gout which is the
period of time in between gout attacks where you feel no symptoms and your joints
function properly. Life is great and you feel great but everything is just an illusion! For