Elevating The Affected Joints
Gout can cause pain and swelling, especially in the feet, hands, knees, and ankles.
One way to reduce swelling is by elevating the affected joints. This encourages blood and fluid to move away from the joint and back toward the heart.
A person can also use an ice-pack in combination with elevation to reduce their gout symptoms.
How To Get Gout Relief At Home
This article was co-authored by Siddharth Tambar, MD. Dr. Siddharth Tambar, MD is a board certified rheumatologist at Chicago Arthritis and Regenerative Medicine in Chicago, Illinois. With over 19 years of experience, Dr. Tambar specializes in Regenerative Medicine and Rheumatology, with a focus on Platelet rich plasma and Bone marrow derived stem cell treatments for arthritis, tendinitis, injuries, and back pain. Dr. Tambar holds a BA in Economics from State University of New York at Buffalo. He earned his MD from State University of New York at Syracuse. He completed his Internship, Residency in Internal Medicine, and his Rheumatology Fellowship at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Dr Tambar is board certified in both rheumatology and internal medicine. He also holds Musculoskeletal Ultrasound Diagnostic and Interventional certifications from the American College of Rheumatology and the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine.There are 12 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page.wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. In this case, 100% of readers who voted found the article helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 464,327 times.
Dos And Dont For Gout
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Increase Your Fluid Intake
You must consume ample amounts of fluids daily to dilute uric acid and facilitate its excretion through more urine output. Water is your best bet, but you can also supplement your fluid needs through healthy juices and succulent fruits or vegetables.
Avoid alcohol and sweetened beverages such as sodas, which can dehydrate the body due to their strong diuretic effect.
Practice Mindfulness And Meditation
The good news: A gout attack is self-limited and will clear in time. In the meantime, according to the Arthritis Foundation, meditation, yoga breathing, mindfulness, and guided imagery can help you deal with the pain.
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How To Get Rid Of Gout Pain Fast
Dealing with sudden gout pain is not easy as the pain may occur from mild to severe with inflammation in the joint.
It is essential to show awareness and act fast if you experience such a situation at midnight to get some relief.
We have provided a list of the most common Immediate Gout Pain Relief below-
Best Solution For Immediate Gout Pain Relief
1)First of all take aspirin or ibuprofen, which may bring down the swelling and relieve some of the pain within 24 hours.
2)You can also try applying something hot to the affected area, like a heating pad or simply take a long warm soak in the tub.
3) However, Stay away from the heat if you have an acute injury or are having a flare. If youre not careful, this can lead to further complications with your condition, and pain relief is the last thing on your mind! You should instead try cold treatments for a few days which will reduce inflammation and blood flow in order to alleviate some of that discomfort.
4)Take two aspirins and an apple cider vinegar tablet three times per day instead of just one aspirin and one tablet of apple cider vinegar. This combination of aspirin and apple cider vinegar may help reduce gout pain.
5)To prevent a gout attack from occurring, take 250-500 mg of vitamin C daily, which helps lower uric acid levels in the blood.
6)Drink plenty of water to help reduce the uric acid levels in your body and keep it from re-depositing into the joints where you are experiencing pain.
7)If a gout attack has already occurred, apply ice packs to the affected area for 10 minutes every hour or two until the pain subsides.
8)Acupuncture may help relieve some of the gout pain as well, but it should be used only under a doctors supervision because it can increase uric acid levels in your body if you have kidney problems.
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What Are Symptoms Of Gout
Chances are you wont even know you have gout until youve experienced your first painful attack, often at night. Symptoms may not develop for years, but these often include:
- Arthritis that develops quickly, resulting in a swollen, red, and warm joint with limited movement
- An arthritis attack in only one joint often the big toe, as well as a foot, ankle, or knee
- Bright red or purplish skin around the affected joint
- More than one attack of acute arthritis
What Are The Main Causes Of Gout
Gout is the outcome of an unplanned diet that increases the uric acid level. It started with simple symptoms like mild pain or redness in the joint but turn complex in no time.
Apart from diet, there are lots of factors that play a vital part in spreads out gouts. Let us check the cause:
- Intake of food like red meat, selfish, etc.
- To consume too much alcohol.
- If anyone develops a joint injury.
- If anyone is suffering from kidney diseases or thyroid and could not eliminate the uric acid from the body properly.
- Not drinking sufficient water.
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What Does A Gout Attack Look And Feel Like What Would A Foot Or Toe With Gout Look Like
When gout occurs, the joint tends to be extremely painful and is warm, red and swollen . The inflammation that is part of a gout attack is systemic, so that fever and chills, fatigue and malaise are not uncommonly part of the picture of a gout attack.
Figure 6: Toe with Acute Attack of Gout
Gout attacks can occur in joints that look normal, or in joints that have easily visible deposits of uric acid. These deposits are called tophi and can be in numerous locations, but especially on the feet and elbows. In Figure 9, the little finger of the right hand is bandaged since fluid was just removed from it, which demonstrated innumerable uric acid crystals.
Figure 7a: Tophi on Foot
Figure 7b: Tophus Over Achilles’ Tendon
Figure 8: Tophus on Elbow
Figure 9: Tophi on Hands
Figure 10: Large Tophus of Finger
While some gout attacks will solve quickly by themselves, the majority will go on for a week, several weeks, or even longer if not treated. Since gout attacks are usually quite painful and often make walking difficult, most gout sufferers will request specific treatment for their painful condition.
What Not To Eat
If you wish to keep your uric acid levels in check, it is essential that you minimize your intake of the following:
- Organ meats, which includes liver, kidney, and sweetbreads
- Red meat, particularly lamb and beef
- Certain vegetables, including mushrooms, asparagus, and cauliflower
- Seafood and shellfish, such as crabs, lobster, and sardines
- Foods with high sodium content, specifically sauces, and gravies
These dietary exclusions should be accompanied by proper dietary additions that include foods that are low in purines, such as cereals, vegetables, soya bean-based foods, and dairy products.
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Natural Home Remedies For Gout
People with gout are increasingly looking for natural home remedies for gout. So, if youre in that group, here are ten of the most popular and effective.
But first, please take a couple of minutes to listen to gout specialist, the excellent Dr. Edwards
To summarize:
- It can affect various joints in the body, not just the big toe.
- Repeat gout attacks can eventually lead to disablement.
- The incidence of gout worldwide has doubled over the past 20 years.
- Gout isnt just a disease of the rich, those who overeat, or those who drink alcohol to excess.
- Theres certainly a link between obesity and gout, but not all obese people will have gout.
- Theres also a link between alcohol and gout, but not all people with gout drink alcohol.
- Middle-aged men are most at risk although women also have a higher risk as they grow older.
- Once you have gout its for life, not just when youre suffering the symptoms of a gout attack.
Note: Dr. Edwards spoke about the links between obesity, alcohol and gout and explained that not all people who are obese or who drink to excess have gout.
However, studies have shown that obesity and alcohol are high risk factors for gout. So although some people who are obese, or who drink to excess, may not have gout now, nevertheless they are still at a higher risk of gout at some point in their lives compared with those who are not obese and who dont drink to excess.
For me, the two main takeaways from Dr. Edwards very informative video are:
What Are The Symptoms Of Gout
Gout flare-ups are extremely unpleasant. The main symptoms are intense and even excruciating joint pain that eventually subsides to discomfort, inflammation and redness. Here are some common symptoms of gout to look out for.
1. Pain in Your Big ToePain in the big toe is the most common symptom of gout. Excess uric acid accumulates in the joint of the big toe, resulting in a very sore toe and the inability to walk. The pain can be so bad that it causes you to limp until it fades after a few hours or days.
2. Tenderness, Swelling and RednessThese three things are all signs and symptoms of gout. After the initial pain of a gout attack has subsided, you will likely experience all these things at one point or another. You may notice them directly on the joint, or in the surrounding areas and even across the body. If you have gout in your big toe, you may notice your entire foot and leg affected by these symptoms.
3. Pain Attacks People with gout experience sudden pain attacks, most often in the toes, feet, legs and lower extremities. These attacks can reverberate throughout your body and make it hard for you to walk or stand. These pain attacks often happen in the middle of the night, making it difficult for you to get back to sleep.
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Managing A Gout Flare
Gout flares are unexpected and painful heres how to get a handle on them.
Few things in life are more painful than a gout flare, so if youre awakened in the wee hours by a joint that is tender, swollen, red and radiating heat, youll want to act fast. Heres what you can do when a gout flare starts to ease the pain of and reduce the risk of others.
Immediate Gout Pain Relief
Immediate gout pain relief can be achieved with the use of two gout remedies.
These quick-acting medicines are available online and can be prescribed by a doctor in some countries where biologics cannot be sold without a prescription.
The first is Colchicine, which has been used for centuries to treat gout as well as other conditions such as pericarditis and familial Mediterranean fever, which are auto-inflammatory disorders. As long ago as the third century AD Colchicum seeds were prescribed to treat people with gout.
The second remedy is Uricinex, which contains the biologic agent uricase, a substance that breaks down the uric acid.
Uricinex and Colchicine are available without prescription in Greece, Portugal, Turkey, and Croatia.
In Hungary Colchicine is marketed as a prescription-only drug and in other countries in Europe, it can be purchased as an over-the-counter drug, but only with a prescription.
In the United States, both Colchicine and Uricinex are available by mail order from various online sources.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has classified all the products containing Colchicine as both prescription drugs and over-the-counter drugs, but it is only available by prescription as there have been rare reports of death with its use.
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Lemon Juice Neutralizes The Excess Uric Acid In The Bloodstream As It Can Alkalize The Body And Thus Relieves Gout Pain
9. Make A Lemonade
Indulge in the goodness of lemons by pouring in some lemon juice for yourself but minus the sugar. Lemon juice neutralizes the excess uric acid in the bloodstream as it can alkalize the body and thus relieves gout pain. Squeeze some lemon into a glass of water and drink three times a day preferably after meals to get the best results.
10. Soak in the Goodness of Epsom Salts
Epsom salts are rich in magnesium and good for your heart. They are also known to regulate blood pressure. It also removes toxins from the body soothing the inflamed joints and relaxing the body. Take ½ cup of Epsom salts and mix it in a bucket of warm water and soak the affected parts in it. Wash with regular water afterward.
11. Exercise Regularly
Exercise is also a great way to unwind
Lack of exercise and obesity also causes gout in people and hence exercising regularly is the key to a good & healthy system free from gout and other diseases. Exercise keeps the insulin levels normal in the body which reduces the uric acid deposits. Controlling our weights by eating right will also aid in weight management and hence provide relief from gout.
12. Eat Right
A diet high in purines causes uric acid levels to rise. Avoid eating rich in purine foods like the following to avoid gout-flare-ups.
- Red meat, liver or kidneys or any meat form in large amounts
- Seafood such as mackerel, scallops or any other oily fish in huge quantities
- Spinach and cauliflower in large quantities
- Beer
Gout Remedies To Prevent And Relieve Pain Quickly
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If youve ever suffered a gout attack, you know how completely terrible they can be. From burning and swelling, to excruciating pain, gout is one of the most unpleasant conditions there is. Once you feel the warning signs of a gout attack coming on, you know you want to do whatever you can to mitigate the pain. If you deal with gout pain and discomfort, here are 4 gout remedies to help you through it.
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When Is Surgery Considered For Gout
The question of surgery for gout most commonly comes up when a patient has a large clump of urate crystals , which is causing problems. This may be if the tophus is on the bottom of the foot, and the person has difficulty walking on it, or on the side of the foot making it hard to wear shoes. An especially difficult problem is when the urate crystals inside the tophus break out to the skin surface. This then can allow bacteria a point of entry, which can lead to infection, which could even track back to the bone. Whenever possible, however, we try to avoid surgery to remove tophi. The problem is that the crystals are often extensive, and track back to the bone, so there is not a good healing surface once the tophus is removed. In some rare cases, such as when a tophus is infected or when its location is causing major disability, surgical removal may be considered.
Since it is hard to heal the skin after a tophus is removed, a skin graft may be needed. For this reason, we often try hard to manage the tophus medically. If we give high doses of medication to lower the urate level, such as allopurinol, over time the tophus will gradually reabsorb. In severe cases, we may consider using the intravenous medication pegloticase , since it lowers the urate level the most dramatically, and can lead to the fastest shrinkage of the tophus.
Keep Asking Questions Until You Get The Answer You Need
The Medical Experts are all here to answer your questions online or with a phone call.
Baking soda will help you to relieve swelling and pain linked to gout very quickly. Here is what you need to do:
Preparation:
- At first, you mix 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda with a cup of water.
- Then you drink it 3 times a day to get rid of gout as well as its pain.
- You should do this process for about 2 weeks.
- You have to make sure that you do not take this way more than three times a day and if you have hypertension, you must ignore this remedy.
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Can I Manage Gout
Although it cant be cured, gout can be managed effectively with medicine and lifestyle changes.
If your uric acid levels remain high after a gout attack, doctors may prescribe medication that can lower your levels. This can lessen your risk of long-term problems.
Self-care also is important if you have gout. A diet that avoids foods high in purine, high-fructose drinks, and alcohol can lessen your long-term risks. Losing weight also can lower your chances of gout. If you use medicines like diuretics, stopping that use can help prevent gout as well.
If you have a family history of gout or suspect you may have it, schedule an appointment with your doctor.