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Gout is a common type of arthritis and accounts for about 5% of all cases of arthritic condition. But what is gout and what are the stages of this condition?...

Q: Gout

asked by: DoctorQuestion on May 2nd, 2008

What I would like to understand is if the pain in my earlobe is really gout, because it shows all symptoms, coming from stress, activity and eating tuna on the eve, or red meat? If it is gout, than why has it travelled to my ear? It is always in the right ear and never anywhere else anymore. It lasts for like two to three days, with peaks of pain during the day and lowest pain when I just wake up.

Replies(1)

Dr. Nikola Gjuzelov , MD

replied on May 7th, 2008

Gout Answer A4067

Gout is a chronic inflammatory reaction to uric salts in the joints and tissues above the joints. The earlobe is also one of the places where uric salts can precipitate and chronic inflammation occurs.

The uric acid level in the blood is not a diagnostic criterion for gout because there can be gout with normal levels of uric acid and there can be no gout with increased levels of uric acid. An increased uric acid blood level is usually present during the acute attack of gout. The most important diagnostic criterion for gout is detection of uric crystals inside the leucocytes derived from the fluid aspirated from the affected joint. Medicines for decreasing the uric acid blood level are indicated if the uric acid level is over 420 µmol/L.

You may want to consult a rheumatologist about this.

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