Uric Acid Test

Depending on the condition that causes your high levels of uric acid, you may not need to take drugs. If you have a sudden attack caused by high uric acid, as with an attack of gout, your doctor may treat you with the drug colchicine and a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, such as aspirin or ibuprofen. This treatment usually is short-term.

However, you may have to stay on a maintenance therapy for a few years, until your uric acid levels come under control. You may be given drugs such as probenecid that help to clear your system of uric acid salts or you may be given drugs that interfere with uric acid production, such as allopurinol.

If you have had chemotherapy or radiation, you may have to take uric acid tests more often and possibly treat the condition over time.

Gout is one of the most common forms of arthritis. A gout attack usually happens at night, and within 12 or so hours there may be severe pain and swelling in the joint. Gout usually affects only one or two joints at the same time, typically in the feet and ankles. It often occurs in the big toe, and people can notice it at night when their bedding rubs on their toe and causes extreme pain. Gout happens when crystals derived from uric acid accumulate in the joints. These crystals cause inflammation.

Without treatment, an early attack of gout usually goes away in a week. It may be months or years until the next attack. As time goes by, more joints can become affected and the disease may cause disabilities or may eventually cripple the patient. That is why it is important to get treated right away if you think you may have gout. Your doctor will request a uric acid test and may have to take fluid from the joint through a needle to look for the microscopic crystals.

No. Gout affects mostly men, and it is very rare in women until after menopause, the time in life when a woman's monthly period stops and especially if they are taking diuretics. Gout in young women is extremely rare and needs special investigation.