Finger gout. Your fingers may be among the worst places to get a gout attack.This page about finger gout was last reviewed, or updated, on 17 May 2011. The American humorist (humourist) and gourmet Calvin Trillin was asked what was the one most important thing he learnt in his long life. His reply: "If you see a lump on your thumb, you have GOUT." A significant feature about finger gout is that the fingers are not usually the first attack location. Gout will probably have attacked other body joints before it turns its attention to the fingers. This means that when gout attacks the fingers, it will have been bodily present for some time. Therefore uric acid levels will probably be high, 9.0 mg/dL and above, if treatment for gout hasn't lowered it. If this is so, finger gout could take much longer to control. How long does gout last in the fingers? Another unfortunate feature is that some experienced gout sufferers report that finger gout attacks last longer than, for example, gout flares in the big toes or other parts of the feet and ankles. One of the characteristics of gout is that the longer you have it, the longer attacks become. The average gout attack lasts from 3 to 10 days. But the average finger attack will probably last much longer. Three weeks has been reported, and so has two years. There may be a simultaneous attack in another body part, medically called polyarticular gout, which is another sign that gout has got worse. Cross your fingers So one suspects that a finger attack means that gout treatment is not going well - that uric acid levels are not falling. It means that if very close attention to all possible gout remedies has not been made in the past, it certainly should be now. It's a real warning that you must try everything you can to get gout under control. This includes regular uric acid tests. On the other hand, if the fingers are the first attack spot, the situation isn't as serious, but the first gout attack is always (or should be) a life changing event. Amongst the toes, the big toe is invariably the first target, and usually always a target amongst all the toes. In the fingers you might think the thumb would be the most attacked, being somewhat dissimilar to the rest, as is the big toe. And both fingers and toes are cold parts of the body, susceptible to gout flares. But there are reasons why the big toe is attacked first that don't apply to the thumb. Who is more likely to get finger gout? Consistent with the idea that a finger gout attack is a sign that gout is more entrenched, is the fact that finger attacks are more common in older people. They have had more time for uric acid to build up. Finger attacks are especially common among post menopause older women. Which fingers? Any of the fingers can be attacked. A curiosity noted by many gouty folk is that gout only attacks them in the same fingers. The thumb and index in some, or the middle ones in others and so on. But it leaves the rest alone. It may begin in one finger and move on to another, so it's in two or three. The smallest outside finger (pinky finger) is not exempt. Neither are the finger tips (finger pads). And gout may have its favourite (favorite) gout finger joints. What happens? Finger joints swell when tophus develops in the joints and under the skin of a wrinkled gouty finger. They continue to swell as more tophi gets deposited. Tophi can even develop in the finger tips (finger pads) or at the end of finger bones, or on the bones. Fingers will probably stiffen and can't be moved. Cuticles become out-of-shape and broken. Eventually the bones and the joints can be disformed and damaged. Swollen finger joints are among gout's most vivid images. If not small parsnips, finger gout can look like a quail's egg has grown on the side of a finger. Or the whole finger can swell to three times its normal size. If you have finger pain, is it really a gout in the finger attack? If you have finger pain gout is not necessarily the cause. Even if the pain is in one of the finger joints. The signs and symptoms of gout in the big toe - reddish, shiny, inflamed, hot and of course very painful, are similar in the fingers. There may also be pus in the finger. Pseudo gout is a condition where there is also pain and swelling in the fingers. But pseudo gout is not gout.
Visit this page to read about how pseudo gout is different from gout.
And an inflamed finger may be caused by a non-gout arthritic condition. Both can be easily confused with gout. However, there is one almost foolproof way of knowing if it's gout that does not depend on a certain number of ticks on a gout cause index or a doctor's or rheumatologist's experience. This is a joint aspiration (aka arthrocentesis) examination. This is the real test for gout, and if you suspect you have finger gout you should try to get this test done. What happens here is that tissue and fluid from the affected area are taken and placed under a microscope with a polarizing lens. The MSU gout crystals can then be identified. If you have finger pain gout is not inevitable. Is there any specific treatment for finger gout? The way gout is controlled, wherever it occurs, is by lowering uric acid levels. There isn't any specific treatment for curing gout in the finger. However, there are creams, balms, lotions, you can use which might bring some soothing relief. Hope in the future The new gout drug Krystexxa, (generic name: pegloticase) which received its first medical authority approval in mid September 2010 from the U.S. FDA, has demonstrated some success against tophi gout in its trials. In a pooled Krystexxa studies' analysis, 40% of 52 patients gained what was described as complete tophus resolution. (Other gout medications had failed). In an extension trial still more cleared up at least one tophus. However, we don't know how many of these were finger gout cases. This drug may be more effective against tophi in the fingers than any existing gout drug medication. Krystexxa is not a tablet or capsule. It's a course of intravenous (IV) infusions, probably every two weeks, at an approved medical center (centre) which gout sufferers visit. See for yourself what Krystexxa can do. There are before-and-after photos of some of the trials' successes with finger gout tophi on PDF pages 19 and 42(two sets of photos on page 42) of a Krystexxa submission document. You can download it free, or view it online,
at this page at the U.S. FDA website.
The one to download or view is "KRYSTEXXA™ (pegloticase) for intravenous infusion BLA No. 125293 ..."
Read what ankle gout is like, plus some tips on dealing with ankle gout pain.
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