Gout & Its Homoeopathic Approach: Pathogenesis, Clinical Features and Management

This chapter highlights about pathogenesis, clinical features and management of gout. Gout is unusual among the rheumatic diseases in that its etiology, treatment, and prevention are well understood. Thus, the long-term sequelae of gout should be completely avoidable with adequate treatment, making the overall prognosis excellent. Men and women who are postmenopausal and who are middle-aged to elderly most frequently suffer from the metabolic disease gout. The first metatarsophalangeal joint is first affected, then other joints, with an abnormal elevation of urate levels in the body caused by either excessive urate production (10%), inadequate urate elimination (90%) or occasionally both. Homoeopathic remedies are effective in treating acute as well as chronic gout and also helps in reducing the uric acid levels, thus preventing further attacks and other complications of hyperuricemia. The diagnosis of gout is confirmed by the demonstration of negatively birefringent crystals in synovial joint fluid.