Gout is the most common form of inflammatory arthritis. The study, published today in The Lancet Regional Health – Western Pacific, provides a comprehensive assessment of the distribution pattern of gout and hyperuricemia (the sustained elevated blood urate level, a measure of the amount of uric acid in the blood and a precursor of gout) and their relationships with a range of other diseases in a Chinese population. The findings may inform prevention and management approaches in China and globally.
The researchers analysed data from 0.5 million CKB participants recruited between 2004 and 2008 from ten diverse urban and rural areas in China. All participants had comprehensive baseline self-reported information on lifestyle risk factors and medical history and were followed up for 12 years with linked electronic health records, with 16,800 participants also having blood plasma urate level measured.
The researchers examined how common gout and hyperuricemia were in difference socio-demographic subgroups, and then looked at the relationships between gout and 16 major conditions and death from all causes.
Read the full story on the Nuffield Department of Population Health website.