Can gout be cured in young people?

  There is no definite conclusion whether gout can be cured or not. However, most young patients can be free of acute gout attacks for a long time after systematic and standardized treatment, and the blood uric acid is at a low level, and some scholars believe that gout can be considered “cured” at this time.  Gout is a joint disease caused by the deposition of uric acid crystals, and with the improvement of material living standards, the incidence of gout in China is gradually becoming younger. At present, the etiology and pathogenesis of gout are well studied, and the efficacy of therapeutic drugs is clear, which can effectively control the development of the disease. Young people generally have good physical function, a strong metabolism, and are able to carry out appropriate physical exercise. Although they suffer from gout, as long as they keep their mouths shut, adhere to a low purine diet, and at the same time “open their legs” and do appropriate physical exercise, they can improve their ability to metabolize uric acid, and with less or no medication, they can be free of acute attacks of gout for a long time and keep their blood uric acid at a low level. For such young gout patients, low purine diet and exercise are their powerful weapons to control their disease. However, in clinical practice, even for young gout patients, many of them have difficulty with low purine diet and physical exercise, and they often start drinking beer and eating barbecue again after their joint swelling and pain is relieved, lacking exercise and not paying attention to regular rechecking of blood uric acid level, which leads to frequent acute gout attacks and eventually gout stones, causing internal organ damage.  This shows that for young gout patients, a low purine diet and exercise are essential to control the progress of the disease with less or no medication.