Objectives: To evaluate the clinical features and risk factors for gout flare during postsurgical period in patients who were previously diagnosed with gout.
Methods: Seventy patients who had histories of gout and had been consulted in the rheumatologic clinic before surgery under general anesthesia were included. Clinical characteristics of patients who developed a postsurgical gout flare were compared with those of patients who did not develop gout flare.
Results: Among 70 patients, 31 (44.3%) developed gout flare during the postsurgical period. Mean intervals from surgery to gout flare was 3.7 days. Flares tended to involve monoarticular joints (61.3%) and affect lower extremity joints (83.9%). Knee joints (26%) and foot joints except the first metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joint (26%) were more frequently involved than the first MTP joint (13%). Presurgical uric acid level ≥ 9 mg/dL (OR 3.77, 95% CI 1.28-11.10, p = 0.016) and amount of uric acid changes between before and after surgery (OR 1.62, 95% CI 1.21-2.18, p = 0.001) were risk factors for postsurgical gout flare. Taking allopurinol reduced the risk of postsurgical gout flare (OR 0.15, 95% CI 0.05-0.45, p = 0.001). Operation time, amount of blood loss during surgery, and surgery site were not significantly associated with postsurgical gout flare.
Conclusions: Adequate uric acid control before surgery could prevent the postsurgical gout flare.
Keywords: Gout; Surgery; Uric acid.