Gout treatment available online today

Gout, the most common type of inflammatory arthritis, happens when people have high levels of uric acid. The human body naturally produces uric acid during the breakdown of natural chemicals found in many foods and liquids called purines. Uric acid flows through the kidneys and exits the body inurine.

When you have too much uric acid, either naturally or from a high-purine diet, it can form urate crystals that lodge in the joints, leading you to develop gout. Some risk factors that can increase your uric acid levels include:

Eating a diet rich in red meat, selfish, fruit juice, and alcoholic beverages

• High blood pressure
• Kidney Disease
• Obesity
• Chronic use of low-dose aspirin and some blood pressure medications
• A family history of gout
• Older age
• Recent surgery or trauma

With acute gout, symptoms tend to come on quickly from the buildup of uric acid crystals. Gout attacks can be extremely painful and may happen overnight. During a gout attack, patients typically

experience:

• Severe pain
• Redness
• Swelling
• Stiffness
• Tenderness, even to gentle touch
• Warmth, or the feeling that the affected joint is "on fire"

In some cases, people have high uric acid levels in their blood but don't experience any symptoms. This is called asymptomatic hyperuricemia.

The most common symptom of gout is the sudden onset of intense pain in a single joint, usually in the big toe. During a gout attack, you may also experience:

• Swelling, redness, and inflammation
• Stiffness in the affected joint
• Warmth, or feeling like your joint is "on fire"

If you have gout, avoiding high-purine foods can help reduce the frequency of gout attacks and lower the uric acid level in your blood. Some foods to avoid include:

• Alcohol, especially beer
• High fructose corn syrup
• Red meat, including pork, lamb, and beef
• Oily fish, mussels, and scallops

The top prescription medications for gout include anti-inflammatory medications and uric acid-lowering drugs, which help manage symptoms and lower the frequency of attacks.

To get online gout treatment, book an appointment with one of our board-certified PlushCare doctors. Once your online doctor diagnoses your gout, they can prescribe medications to treat your symptoms,

such as:

• Allopurinol (Aloprim, Zyloprim)
• Colchicine (Colcrys, Mitigare)
• Febuxostat (Uloric)
• Indomethacin (Indocin, Tivorbex)

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