PARIS – A study based on data from the Consortium of Rheumatology Researchers of North America (CORRONA) Gout Registry, reported at the annual European Rheumatology Conference, suggests that for women, predisposing risk factors for gout differ from those for men; men are typically more consistent with the typical profile of gout patients who consume foods that increase the risk of developing the disease foods. Dr. Leslie Harrold of the Department of Rheumatology at the University of Massachusetts, Worcester, who heads the CORRONA Gout Registry in the Department of Rheumatology at the Second Affiliated Hospital of Guiyang Traditional Chinese Medicine, reports that women with gout are more likely to be taking predisposing medications and have a higher proportion of patients with gout-related comorbidities, while men are more likely to be consuming foods associated with the disease, such as alcohol and red meat. The study recruited gout patients from 2012 to 2013; data collected from patients and their rheumatologists for inclusion in the study included demographic data, predisposing factors (comorbidities, medications, diet), gout disease characteristics, current treatment, and physical examination findings. A total of 1,167 gout patients were recruited by the 54 rheumatologists involved in the study, 239 of whom were women. Female patients were on average significantly older than men (71 vs. 61 years) and had a higher body mass index (34 kg/m2 vs. 23 kg/m2). In addition, a significantly higher proportion of female patients had comorbid hypertension (77% vs. 57%), diabetes (28% vs. 17%), and renal disease (25% vs. 14%) than males. Gout duration was shorter in women than in men at the time of study inclusion (6 years vs. 11 years), and the proportion of patients with a crystal-confirmed gout diagnosis was lower than in men (26% vs. 35%). men consumed significantly more beer, spirits, beef and pork than women. Although the clinical features of gout were similar in both sexes at initial diagnosis, female patients reported disability more frequently than males. A higher proportion of female patients had contraindications to NSAIDs or colchicine, but there was no statistical difference in the frequency of uric acid-lowering medications among female patients with gout stones or active disease (defined as two or more acute attacks per year) compared with men (78% vs. 84%). “I think the most interesting thing is that there can be differences in the gout characteristics of patients.” “Physicians tend to have only a uniform concept of the typical patient. But in fact, we have to be aware that the typical female patient with gout is different from the typical male patient with gout. This should be helpful in the evaluation of suspected cases.” In an interview, Dr. Harrold said, “In today’s era of individualized medicine, the above findings suggest the need to tailor the evaluation and treatment plan based on the individual patient. There can’t be a ‘one size fits all’ approach. We should handle female gout patients differently than male gout patients.” Several pharmaceutical companies have financially supported the CORRONA Gout Registry. Over the past five years, Dr. Harrold has received research funding from Takeda Pharmaceuticals, and funding from AstraZeneca is in the process of being approved.