Mayo Clinic Health Manager
Get free personalized health guidance for you and your family.
Get Started
close window
Housecall Archives
About our e-newsletters
- Free e-newsletters
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- We do not share your e-mail address
Housecall, our weekly general-interest e-newsletter, keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics with timely, reliable, practical information, recipes, blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts and more. Our biweekly topic-specific e-newsletters also include blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts, and other useful information that will help you manage your health.
Housecall Archives
close window
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Tests and diagnosis
By Mayo Clinic staffTests to help diagnose gout may include:
- Joint fluid test. Your doctor may use a needle to draw fluid from your affected joint. When examined under the microscope, your joint fluid may reveal urate crystals.
- Blood test. Your doctor may recommend a blood test to measure the uric acid level in your blood. Blood test results can be misleading, though. Some people have high uric acid levels, but never experience gout. And some people have signs and symptoms of gout, but don't have unusual levels of uric acid in their blood.
References
- Gout. American College of Rheumatology. http://www.rheumatology.org/public/factsheets/diseases_and_conditions/gout.asp. Accessed Sept. 23, 2009.
- Gout. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec04/ch035/ch035b.html. Accessed Sept. 23, 2009.
- Becker MA. Clinical manifestations and diagnosis of gout. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Sept. 23, 2009.
- Becker MA. Treatment of acute gout. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Sept. 23, 2009.
- Hayman S, et al. Gout: Is a purine-restricted diet still recommended? Journal of the American Dietetic Association. 2009;109:1652.
- Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2005. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. http://www.health.gov/DietaryGuidelines/dga2005/document/default.htm . Accessed Sept. 23, 2009.
- Demio PC. Gout. In: Rakel RE. Integrative Medicine. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/161368019-9/891013598/1494/112.html#4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-2954-0..50069-7--cesec4_3349. Accessed Sept. 23, 2009.
- Yu K-H, et al. Dietary factors associated with hyperuricemia in adults. Seminars in Arthritis and Rheumatism. 2008;37:243.
- Becker MA. Prevention of recurrent gout. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Sept. 23, 2009.
- Mercier LR. Gout. In: Ferri FF. Ferri's Clinical Advisor 2010. St. Louis, Mo.: Mosby; 2009. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/161368019-15/891042809/2088/271.html#4-u1.0-B978-0-323-05609-0..00016-2--sc0085_5557. Accessed Sept. 23, 2009.
- Questions and answers about gout. National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases. http://www.niams.nih.gov/Health_Info/Gout/default.asp. Accessed Sept. 23, 2009.
