If you have suffered from an attack of gout, chances are you won’t soon forget it. Gout causes extreme pain in a joint that comes on suddenly and is accompanied by redness and swelling of the joint as well as a feeling of warmth in the joint or skin surrounding it. In the feet, it most often affects the big toe joint, although it can also occur in the heel or ankle joint. Men are more likely to suffer from gout than women and, in fact, women will not get gout before menopause unless they have had a hysterectomy.

What Causes Gout?

Gout occurs when uric acid, a substance normally produced and excreted by the body, builds up and accumulates in the blood stream. The uric acid crystallizes and gets deposited in a joint—gout rarely affects more than one joint at a time. The big toe joint is a common depository because crystals are affected by cold and the foot, being the part of the body farthest away from the heart, tends to be the coolest. A gout attack can be triggered by foods high in purines. At Foot & Ankle Specialists, PC, we recommend that our patients who are prone to gout avoid the following:

• Red wine
• Beer
• Red meat
• Rich sauces
• Seafood

Certain medications such as aspirin and some of the ones used to treat high blood pressure have also been associated with an increased incidence of gout attacks. Since gout has to do with how purines are metabolized in the body, people with diabetes or another disease that damages the kidneys are more likely to be afflicted by gout.

Getting Relief

Diagnosing gout can be tricky because it sometimes resembles an infection, which can pose a significant threat in a joint. Sometimes people with gout even run a fever. Our board certified foot and ankle surgeons, Dr. Scott E. Hughes, Dr. Greg P. Vogt, Dr. Christine I. Tumele, and Dr. Matthew W.E. Lewin will conduct a thorough examination of your foot and take a complete medical history. Blood tests may be ordered and sometimes a sample from the joint will be taken and analyzed. The foot doctor may prescribe a medication for the gout as well as an antibiotic in case an infection is present. Usually an attack will begin to subside fairly quickly after a patient starts the medication. For some people, chronic or reoccurring gout is an ongoing concern.

Pain and stiffness in a foot or ankle joint can also be symptomatic of other disorders. If you are experiencing any discomfort, make an appointment at either our Monroe or Lambertville office as soon as possible.