The signs and symptoms of gout are almost always acute, occurring suddenly — often at night — and without warning. They include:
Intense joint pain. Gout usually affects the large joint of your big toe, but it can occur in your feet, ankles, knees, hands and wrists. The pain is likely to be most severe within the first 12 to 24 hours after it begins.
Lingering discomfort. After the most severe pain subsides, some joint discomfort may last from a few days to a few weeks. Later attacks are likely to last longer and affect more joints.
Inflammation and redness. The affected joint or joints become swollen, tender and red.
When to see a doctor
If you experience sudden, intense pain in a joint, call your doctor. Gout that goes untreated can lead to worsening pain and joint damage.
Seek medical care immediately if you have a fever and a joint is hot and inflamed, which can be a sign of infection.
Signs and symptoms of gout are generally acute – they come on suddenly without warning. A significant proportion of patients experience them at night.
Severe pain in the joints - The patient may experience pain in his ankles, hands, wrists, knees or feet. More commonly the big toe is affected (podagra). Many patients describe the affected areas as warm/hot. The fluid sacs that cushion tissue (bursae) may become inflamed (bursitis) – when this happens in the elbow it is called olcranon bursitis, while in the knee prepatellar bursitis.
Gradually goes away – A bout can last for over a week if left untreated – and then gradually goes away during the following week or two.
Itchy and peeling skin later - As the gout subsides the skin around the affected area may be itchy and peel. By the end of it the patient feels fine.
Redness and inflammation – The sufferer will most likely have tender, red and swollen joint(s) in the areas that experienced the most pain.
Red/purplish skin – The affected area may become red or purplish, making the patient think he has an infection.
Fever – Some patients have an elevated temperature.
Less flexibility – The affected joint may be harder to use, the patient has limited movement.
No symptoms – Some patients experience no symptoms. In these cases it may develop into chronic gout.
Nodules – The gout may first appear as tophi (nodules) in the elbows, hands, or ears.
Symptoms and Stages of Gout
Symptoms of gout may occur as an aftereffect of an illness or surgery. It may appear initially in the nodules of the hands, ears or elbows. Usually gout occurs initially in the big toe; however, other joints are just as prone to gout infection. Gout usually occurs on four subsequent levels, according to severity.
The symptoms of gout differ from stage to stage as described below:
Asymptomatic Stage:
This is the primary stage of gout. At this stage the level of uric acid level in the blood rises, but it is not enough to produce any noticeable symptoms.
Acute Stage:
This is the secondary stage of gout. These symptoms usually last from five to ten days consequently at a time. The symptoms of this stage of gout include abrupt joint pains, inflammations, fever, severe joint pains at night, affected joints become hot and tender to the touch, affected joints are reddish or bruised in appearance, affected areas are left itchy and peeling after pain subsides.
Inter-critical Stage:
In between episodes of gout, there are phases of time that are symptom-free. While for most people this stage lasts anywhere from six months to two years after the first attack of gout, others remain without symptoms for times ranging between five to ten years.
Chronic Stage:
At this final stage of gout, the symptoms and effects ‘settle in’ and the levels of uric acid crystals increase. Large amount of crystallized uric acid become deposited in the cartilage as well as tendons and soft tissues, and even on the membranes between bones. Patients often experience an array of symptoms, such as joint stiffness, restricted joint motion, persistent joint pains, and sores with white pus over the affected area, simultaneous joint pains in various areas of the body, deteriorated kidney function, gout patients have a tendency to get kidney stones more often than others.
Early detection of gout can help doctors to provide better treatment. Contrarily, by the time proper symptoms are present to indicate gout, the disease has probably progressed towards a chronic stage. As the symptoms of gout are very similar at first to those of many kinds of arthritis (rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis etc.), it is difficult for doctors to diagnose it.
While there is no cure for gout as of yet, early detection of gout, along with maintaining a proper lifestyle and a healthy diet can alleviate the associated pains considerably. With the help of proper medication like NSAIDs, steroids and colchicine, patients can relieve themselves of the symptoms of gout and postpone further gout attacks.
