Screening for Gout

The purpose of screening is early diagnosis and treatment. Screening tests are usually administered to people without current symptoms, but who may be at high risk for certain diseases or conditions.

Screening Guidelines

Generally, people are not screened for gout. However, according to the American Association for Clinical Chemistry, in some cases when people are undergoing chemotherapy or radiation therapy , blood tests to screen for elevated uric acid levels may be ordered. An increased level of uric acid in the blood increases the risk of developing gout.

References:

American Academy of Family Physicians website. Available at: http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home.html .

American College of Rheumatology website. Available at: http://www.rheumatology.org/ .

National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases website. Available at: http://www.niams.nih.gov/ .

The Merck Manual of Medical Information.17th ed. Simon and Schuster, Inc; 2000.