17 year old boy has gout

NDO - Over the past two years, a 17-year-old boy has had many episodes of dull pain in the toe of one left foot, pain when walking and moving, which goes away after 3-5 days. When he went to the hospital, he was diagnosed with gout.

Warning of Gout in young people

Male student LMH (male, 17 years old, in Hanoi ) went to Medlatec General Hospital for examination due to pain in the first metatarsal joint of the left foot and was diagnosed with acute attack of chronic gout.

H.'s parents shared that for the past 2 years, there have been many episodes of dull pain in the first toe of the left foot, pain when walking and moving, which resolves after 3-5 days. This episode, 2 days after being admitted to the hospital, the pain in the first toe of the left foot is severe, swollen and hot, continuous pain, increases when moving, sometimes pain at night, no history of trauma, no pain in the spine or other joints, and no medication has been taken so they went to see a doctor.

Regarding personal and family history, parents said that H. had Tetralogy of Fallot - the most common congenital heart disease - and had surgery more than 15 years ago, so he had regular cardiology check-ups and was allergic to antibiotics (Ceftriaxone). His maternal grandfather had gout.

Master, resident physician Trinh Thi Nga, Head of the Department of Orthopedics, Medlatec Healthcare System said: When examined, the patient's left big toe joint was hot and swollen, not red, painful when pressed next to the joint, limited active movement due to pain, no tophi were detected clinically.

Before preliminary diagnosis of Gout, patients are consulted for in-depth diagnostic testing and imaging.

Notable results include increased inflammation test, high blood uric acid: 543.22 µmol/L, and images of urate crystal deposits in clusters at the first metatarsal joint of the left foot on dual-energy computed tomography (CT) scan. Therefore, the doctor diagnosed the patient with acute gout and added CT scan and ultrasound images of the patient. After 1 week of treatment, the family reported that H.'s pain in the first metatarsal joint of the left foot was gone.

According to Dr. Nga, H. had a normal diet, was short (due to congenital heart disease), and was young, so when unusual signs appeared, the family subjectively thought it was caused by changes in the weather.

Image of urate crystal deposition in the first metatarsal joint of the left foot on dual-energy CT scan.

However, because H. has congenital heart disease with cyanosis, he is at higher risk of gout and increased uric acid, and his grandfather has gout as a genetic factor. Therefore, H. needs to be examined and checked periodically every 3-6 months to best control gout.

Signs of Gout to Watch Out For

Gout, also known as gout, is a disease caused by a disorder of purine metabolism in the kidneys, causing the kidneys to be unable to filter uric acid from the blood. Uric acid is usually harmless and is formed in the body, then excreted through urine and feces.

In people with gout, uric acid builds up in the blood over time. When levels are too high, tiny crystals of uric acid form. These crystals collect in the joints and cause inflammation, swelling, and pain.

There are many causes of gout such as a diet high in protein and seafood, age and gender, drinking a lot of alcohol for a long time, obesity, and having a family member with gout. Once known as the "rich man's disease", many people are subjective.

Although it is a benign disease, if not detected and treated promptly, the disease can become serious such as tophi, joint damage, kidney stones... In particular, young people with Gout can have cardiovascular diseases such as myocardial infarction, stroke, diabetes, chronic kidney disease...

According to Dr. Nga, when there are signs of pain such as sudden, severe joint pain, swelling, redness, the area around the joint becomes warm... most of these signs usually last for a few hours in 1-2 days, to detect the disease in time, people need to go to the doctor immediately. From the examination results, the doctor will advise on a healthy diet and lifestyle to avoid the disease from progressing to a serious condition, causing consequences and affecting the quality of life.

Gout is a common and painful type of arthritis caused by increased uric acid in the blood. Gout is a multifactorial disease, with both genetic and environmental factors contributing.

Sharing the cause of Gout due to genetics, Master, resident physician Tran Hien - Genetic Biomedical Specialist, Medlatec Testing Center said: Most genes related to uric acid levels in the blood, or Gout, are involved in the urate transport system in the kidneys.

For example, urate transport genes such as SLC2A9, ABCG2, and SLC22A12 regulate serum uric acid levels and the risk of gout. However, the association between variation in serum uric acid levels and genetic variants is small, and the clinical usefulness of genetic tests in predicting gout risk is often limited, while serum uric acid levels are better predictors of the risk of developing gout.

To prevent gout, people should build a healthy lifestyle to reduce the risk of uric acid accumulation and acute gout attacks by drinking plenty of water, limiting alcohol, maintaining a reasonable weight, not eating too many foods rich in nutrients and having regular health check-ups.

Source: https://nhandan.vn/nam-thanh-nien-17-tuoi-da-mac-benh-gout-post856458.html