Alcohol may trigger gout attacks
(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-09-27 10:19 NEW YORK - Drinking alcohol,
even a small amount, may trigger recurrent painful bouts of gout, a study shows.
The gout-triggering effect of alcohol "occurs within a short period of time,
perhaps less than 24 hours," study investigator Yuqing Zhang from Boston
University told Reuters Health. "Thus, subjects with established gout should
avoid drinking alcohol."
Gout is a common form of inflammatory arthritis, often causing recurrent
episodes of pain and swelling of the joints. Although effective therapies are
available, many patients with gout continue to experience recurrent attacks.
Alcohol consumption has long been suspected to be a "trigger" for gout
attacks; however, this hypothesis has not been formally tested.
In their study of 179 gout patients who had an attack within the previous
year, Zhang and colleagues found that alcohol consumption, even a
light-to-moderate amount, is capable of triggering a bout of gout.
Compared with individuals who did not drink alcohol, those who drank five to
six alcoholic beverages during a 48-hour period had a twofold greater likelihood
of having a recurrent attack of gout, the investigators report in the American
Journal of Medicine.
For those who drank seven or more drinks over the 2-day period, the odds for
a recurrent attack of gout was 2.5-fold higher compared with those who
abstained.
An increased risk of recurrent gout attacks was found for beer, wine, and
spirits.
SOURCE: The American Journal of Medicine, September 2006.
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