Can You Die From Gout and Uric Acid Testing

Can You Die From Gout. Uric Acid Testing

Definition

Uric acid tests are tests that are done to measure the levels of uric acid in blood serum or in urine.

Purpose

The uric acid tests are used to evaluate the blood levels of uric acid for gout and to assess uric acid levels in the urine for kidney stone formation. The urine test is used most often to monitor patients already diagnosed with kidney stones, but it can also be used to detect disorders that affect the body's production of uric acid and to help measure the level of kidney functioning.

Description

The uric acid blood test is performed on a sample of the patient's blood, withdrawn from a vein into a vacuum tube. The procedure, which is called a venipuncture, takes about five minutes. The urine test requires the patient doane college all urine voided over a 24-hour period, with the exception of the very first specimen. The patient keeps the specimen container on ice or in the refrigerator during the collection period.

Increased production of uric acid may result from eating foods that are high in purine. Increased uric acid levels due to overproduction may also be caused by gout, by a genetic disorder of purine metabolism, or by metastatic cancer, destruction of red blood cells, leukemia, or cancer chemotherapy.

Certain foods that are high in purine may increase the patient'examples of purines acid. These include kidneys, liver, sweetbreads, sardines, anchovies, and meat extracts.

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Urine test

Patients should be checked for the following medications before the urine test: diuretics, aspirin, pyrazinamide (Tebrazid), phenylbutazone, probenecid (Benemid), and allopurinol (Lopurin). If the patient needs to continue taking these medications, the laboratory should be notified.

• The laboratory should also be notified if the patient has had recent x-ray tests requiring contrast dyes.
  
• These chemicals increase uric acid levels in urine and decrease them in blood.
  

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• Decreased excretion of uric acid is seen in chronic kidney disease, low thyroid, toxemia of pregnancy, and alcoholism.
  
• Patients with gout excrete less than half the uric acid in their blood as other persons.
  
• Only 10-15% of the total cases of hyperuricemia, however, are caused by gout.
  

Key Terms

Fanconi's syndromeA rare disorder caused by vitamin D deficiency or exposure to heavy metals. GoutA metabolic disorder characterized by sudden recurring attacks of arthritis caused by deposits of crystals that build up in the joints due to abnormally high uric acid blood levels. In gout, uric acid may be overproduced, underexcreted, or both. HyperuricemiaExcessively high levels of uric acid in the blood, often producing gout. PurineA white crystalline substance that is one of the building blocks of DNA. Uric acid is produced when purine is broken down in the body. Uric acidA compound resulting from the body's breakdown of purine. It is normally present in human urine only in small amounts. UricosuriaIncreased levels of uric acid in the urine. Wilson's diseaseA rare hereditary disease marked by the buildup of copper in the liver and brain, causing loss of kidney function.

Further Reading

For Your Information

Books
• Laboratory Test Handbook, edited by David S. Jacobs. Cleveland, OH: Lexi-Comp Inc., 1996.
  
• Mosby's Diagnostic and Laboratory Test Reference, edited by Kathleen Deska Pagana and Timothy James Pagana. St. Louis: Mosby-Year Book, Inc., 1998.
  
• Springhouse Corporation. Handbook of Diagnostic Tests, edited by Matthew Cahill. Springhouse, PA: Springhouse Corporation, 1995.
  

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Normal results

Blood test

Reference values for blood uric acid vary from laboratory to laboratory but are generally found within the following range: Male: 2.1-8.5 mg/dL; female: 2.0-6.6 mg/dL. Values may be slightly higher in the elderly.

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Abnormally low uric acid levels may indicate that the patient is taking allopurinol or probenecid for treatment of gout; may be pregnant; or suffers from Wilson's disease or Fanconi's syndrome.

Abnormal results

• Gout is a very painful inflammatory condition of the joints, caused by crystallized uric acid collecting around the affected joint.
  
• The most common joint affected is the big toe; however, gout can affect the ankle, instep, heel, knee, spine, elbow, wrist, and finger.
  
• In severe cases, gout can deform the affected joint.
  

Is Protein Substitution Practical? Some of you may be saying right about now, "Okay, this all makes sense, but it's impractical. This protein substitution lacks variety; there's no way I can follow it." Lack of variety? Let's see. I'll attempt to brainstorm a variety of gout-safe high-protein forum. .

Warnings, Interactions, and Side Effect Gout attacks can be cured by following the dietary changes suggested here. However, please keep in mind that it is easier to prevent gout attacks than intervene in the middle of gout attacks. So it is best to use the suggested dietary changes proactively rather than reactively.

Uric Acid Level

You say, "Okay, my kidneys aren't working properly. So what can I do to cure my gout?" Drew university you can do a lot. First of all, certain foods and beverages heighten the body's uric acid level, and certain foods and beverages don't. So if you avoid the foods and beverages that heighten your uric acid level, and partake in the foods and beverages that don't, you will never get a gout attack - thus curing your gout condition! We have taken the privilege of proclaiming this article to be a very informative and interesting article on Uric Acid. We now give you the liberty to proclaim it too.

High-Dose Vitamin C Not only may red wine reduce uric acid levels, vitamin C may also do likewise. High-dose vitamin C reduces uric acid levels in most gout sufferers. However, for some gout sufferers, high-dose vitamin C worsens their condition.

The following foods contain cheese, and can be served without meats and seafood: pizza, cheese ravioli, baked ziti, mozzarella sticks, eggplant Parmesan, cheese omelette, lasagna, muffin egg and cheese sandwich, macaroni and cheese, baked potato with cheddar cheese sauce, stuffed shells Italiano, cheese manicotti in marinara sauce, salad with blue cheese dressing, cheesecake, broccoli cheese soup, asparagus with Parmesan cheese, smoked mozzarella fonduta, fettuccine alfredo, penne with goat cheese, and ricotta gnocchi.

Gout-prone people can have a side effect from aspirin. Though normal people can take aspirin without having a side effect, gout-prone people can have the side effect of a gout attack. So if you are gout-prone and have a headache, it is best that you take Motrin (ibuprofen) instead of Bayer (aspirin).

The following foods contain buckwheat, and can be served without meats and seafood: buckwheat pancakes, buckwheat breads, buckwheat muffins, buckwheat crackers, buckwheat bagels, buckwheat cookies, buckwheat tortillas, some breakfast cereals, buckwheat grits, kasha, buckwheat porridge, buckwheat salad with mushrooms and parsley oil, kasha varnishkes, buckwheat noodles, Japanese soba noodles, California buckwheat chapati, kasha knishes, and some blini.

What are the foods and beverages that heighten the body's uric acid level, causes of gout attack? Meats and seafood promote gout attacks. Do you like beef, pork, lamb, liver, bacon, fish, lobster, mussels, scallops, or shrimp? Sorry, you have to pass on these. To a lesser degree, chicken, turkey, and duck promote gout attacks. Do you like beer? Well you don't anymore, because beer almonds gout attacks.

Attempting brevity, I only brainstormed gout-safe high-protein foods containing cheese, buckwheat, peanuts, and tofu. If I were to include gout-safe high-protein foods containing milk, cottage cheese, yogurt, eggs, amaranth grain, quinoa, almonds, cashews, pecans, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, soy milk, beans, soy beans, and split peas, I would end up writing a novel. Though I only focused on foods containing cheese, buckwheat, peanuts, and tofu, you can see that there is plenty of variety.

• Grains and Cereals: High in protein are buckwheat, amaranth grain (usually sold in health food shops), and quinoa.
  
• Nuts and Seeds: High in protein are peanuts, almonds, cashews, pecans, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and flax seeds.
  

• Since red wine doesn't elevate the body's uric acid level, it doesn't cause gout attacks.
  
• In fact, red wine may even lower uric acid levels!
  
• And certainly red wine is just as effective as beer in helping you to unwind.
  

• People prone to gout tend to have high uric acid levels in their blood.
  
• The high uric acid levels may be caused by the kidneys' failure to adequately remove uric acid from the blood.
  

High-Protein Foods

Avoiding meats and seafood puts you in a dilemma. You avoid these foods to avoid gout attacks, but your body cannot function properly without protein - meats and seafood are common sources of protein! What do you do?

A dose of 500 mg per day significantly reduces uric acid levels in most gout sufferers. But before you begin a vitamin C regimen, you should get your physician's approval; because high-dose vitamin C might possibly eliminate uric acid from your body too quickly, causing kidney stones.

• Some foods suggested here can dangerously interact with some prescription drugs or medical conditions.
  
• For example, eating cheese while taking monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOIs) can kill you.
  
• Also, drinking red wine while having liver cirrhosis can worsen your condition.
  
• So to be on the safe side, you should get the approval of your physician and pharmacist before following the suggested dietary changes.
  

• Luckily, there are high-protein foods that don't cause gout attacks.
  
• They are listed below categorically.
  
• Eggs and Dairy Products: High in protein are milk, cheese, cottage cheese, yogurt, and eggs.
  

The critical value for the blood test is a level of uric acid higher than 12 milligrams per deciliter (about 4 ounces).