Are Blood Tests for Gout Accurate?

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In general, there are 2 major ways of why uric acid in the body increases higher than normal.

1. When there are too many uric acids in the blood so thus the body fails to control it.
2. Or /and the poor function of kidneys in removing enough uric acid from the body.

High uric acid can be influenced /triggered by some of the following factors:

1. Problems that cause damage to the kidneys.
2. The elevated amounts of cells that breakdown with some types of cancer or due to taking cancer treatments.
3. Lesch-Nyhan syndrome, a hereditary condition.
4. Malnutrition or starvation (fasting).
5. The ability of each individual to remove and produce uric acid can vary.

The result of test is usually ready within 1-2 days. The guideline to classify normal or abnormal levels of uric acid for men, women, and children can slightly vary from lab to lab.

But again, high uric acid in the blood is one of parameters to help diagnose gouty arthritis.

In general, the higher level of this acid means the higher chance for an individual to develop gout, but this doesn’t mean that he /she definitely will or already have gout.

Even a few men (gout is more common in men) with normal uric acid level in their blood (such as lower than 7 mg /dL) can have gout. For this reason, additional test (such as joint fluid test) is usually required to make the diagnosis.

Taking certain medicines can increase or decrease this substance in the blood. For instance, it is more likely to increase if you take thiazide medicine (a kind of diuretic).

Salicylates such as aspirin can cause varying effect on this substance. At high doses, aspirin tends to decrease the concentration of uric acid. But at low doses, it may have an effect in increasing this acid.

If you have high blood uric acid with or without gout, it’s commonly suggested to restrict foods containing purines (a protein that breaks down and become uric acid in the body). Other lifestyle measurers that can help include:

1. Avoid /limit alcohol, because alcohol can reduce the removal of uric acid from your body, see more in this post!
2. If you are overweight, restore it back to normal – but avoid rapid weight loss because this can be counterproductive!
3. Do regular exercise, but don’t go with strenuous exercise!

For other remedies visit this section!