Content

• Steps
• Method 1 of 3: Diet changes
• Method 2 of 3: Home Treatments
• Method 3 of 3: Treating with Medication
• Warnings

Gout is a condition characterized by excessive buildup of uric acid in the joints, which causes pain, inflammation, and redness. Uric acid builds up when kidney problems develop and they can no longer properly filter waste products. This article will walk you through the steps of treating gout caused by kidney problems using dietary changes, medications, and some home treatments. To get started, go to step 1.

Steps

Method 1 of 3: Diet changes

1. 1 Limit your intake of poultry, fish, and meat products. They contain a lot of purine, a chemical compound that breaks down into uric acid in the body. This liquid in large quantities can cause gout.
   • Therefore, if you have been diagnosed with gout, you will need to limit your meat, poultry and fish intake to 113-170 grams per day.
   • Meats that are particularly high in purine include organ meats (eg, liver, brains, kidneys), anchovies, mackerel, herring, beef, lamb, pork, lobster, scallops, and tuna.
2. 2 Don't eat some vegetables. Certain vegetables are also high in purine. These include oats, wheat germ, bran, asparagus, cauliflower, green peas, mushrooms, and spinach. Don't eat more than ½ cup of these vegetables a day.
3. 3 You need to know which foods are low in purine. You can even make a list of low purine foods so you know what to eat for gout.
   • Some low purine foods include eggs, peanut butter, low-fat cheese, milk, yogurt, meatless soup, fruits, bread, rice, cakes, pasta, popcorn, and more.
4. 4 Include fruit in your daily diet. There are many fruits that contain natural ingredients that can help treat gout or relieve its symptoms. These include:
   • Bananas: they contain little purine and a lot of vitamins B and C, as well as potassium. These substances can prevent gout attacks. It is recommended to eat 2-4 bananas every day.
   • Apples: they contain malic acid, which helps neutralize uric acid in the body. It is best to eat apples after every meal.
   • Cherries: cherries contain minerals and phytochemicals that help cure gout by lowering uric acid in the body. It is recommended to eat 10-15 cherries every day.
5. 5 Drink plenty of fluids. Uric acid is a liquid substance and water can act as a solvent. Therefore, drinking more water will help dilute the uric acid in your blood and make it easier for your kidneys to eliminate it.
   • It is recommended to drink 8-16 glasses of water a day. This is equal to 4-6 liters per day.
6. 6 Limit your alcohol intake. Alcoholic drinks (such as beer) are high in purine. Therefore, it is recommended that you limit yourself to one glass a day or stop drinking alcohol altogether to prevent worsening of gout.

Method 2 of 3: Home Treatments

1. 1 Lie with your legs raised at a 45-degree angle. This will help treat gout with gravity. Raising the legs reduces inflammation and swelling as fluid from the joints returns to normal central circulation.
   • Raising your legs also helps the uric acid return back into the blood, which prevents it from building up in the joints. When uric acid builds up in joints, it can crystallize, causing gouty bumps.
   • To raise your legs correctly, they must be above the level of your heart. Suitable if you raise them at a 45 degree angle. You can put 3-4 pillows under your feet and lie down calmly. Do this several times a day.
2. 2 To relieve pain, apply a cold compress to sore joints. It slows down blood circulation near the joints by constricting the blood vessels. It reduces the inflammation caused by the excessive accumulation of blood near the diseased joints. A cold compress also helps to dull any pain.
   • To make a cold compress, you can wrap the ice pack with a clean cloth or towel and apply it to the affected joint for no more than 30 minutes 3-4 times a day. Before applying a new compress, the skin must be at the same temperature.
   • Do not use heating pads or hot compresses, as these will only make the inflammation worse. Heat dilates blood vessels (this is called "vasodilation"), which dramatically increases blood flow, which causes inflammation, swelling and pain.

Method 3 of 3: Treating with Medication

1. 1 Never use aspirin to treat gout. It increases the content of uric acid in the blood and slows down the elimination of waste products from the body. This can make the symptoms of gout worse.
2. 2 Take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAIDs. This group of medicines is known to reduce pain and inflammation, two of the most common symptoms of gout.
   • Ibuprofen should be taken orally in doses of 800 mg every 3-4 hours. However, your doctor may adjust the dosage based on the condition of your kidneys.
   • Indomethacin should be taken 4 times a day in doses of 25 to 50 mg. Depending on the patient's overall treatment plan and kidney condition, the dosage may need to be adjusted.
3. 3 Take colchicine. It effectively prevents flare-ups of gout. Although it is completely unknown how colchicine works, it is believed to inhibit the activity of neutrophils and leukocytes, leading to a decrease in inflammation.
   • Take the first dose of colchicine during a gout flare - 1.2 mg orally and 0.6 mg one hour later.
   • The maximum dose of colchicine that can be taken orally one hour later is 1.8 mg. A very high dose of colchicine can lead to gastrointestinal upset.
4. 4 Take corticosteroids. If you are allergic to NSAIDs, corticosteroids can be a good alternative. They prevent and suppress inflammation.
   • Corticosteroids are also known as immunosuppressants - they suppress the body's immune system.
   • Take corticosteroids by mouth in a dose of 30 to 40 mg once a day.
5. 5 Take allopurinol. This remedy is usually used for long-term control of gout, as it is well accepted by the body. Plus, allopurinol is relatively inexpensive. In order to make uric acid from purine during metabolism, the enzyme xanthine oxidase is required. Allopurinol interferes with the production of this enzyme.
   • The starting dose for allopurinol is 100 mg per day. It can be increased to 200-300 mg (for mild gout) or 400-600 mg (for moderate or severe gout) per day.
   • Allopurinol is especially often prescribed for people with kidney problems that have led to gout.
6. 6 Take probenecid. This agent promotes the excretion of uric acid by suppressing its reabsorption in the renal tubules. It should be noted that probenecid should never be used in the primary treatment of gout attacks. It should be taken rather to maintain a normal state.
   • The maintenance dose is 500 mg when taken orally every 12 hours. Your doctor may decide to increase your dose by 500 mg every month until uric acid levels decrease and are under control.

Warnings

• Prescribing any of the medications mentioned above will depend on your kidney health. Because of the impaired ability of the kidneys to eliminate toxins and waste products, not all drugs can be properly processed by the body, which can lead to the opposite side effects.
• Treatment for gout caused by kidney failure is superficial - not the condition itself is treated, but its symptoms. Although gout can be controlled and prevented with diet and medication, kidney disease is a more complex disease that requires intensive treatment.