THURSDAY, Aug. 11 (HealthDay News) -- Obesity is a strong risk factor for incident gout, and is correlated with a younger age of gout onset, according to a study published in the August issue of Arthritis Care & Research.
Mara A. McAdams DeMarco, from the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, and colleagues assessed the risk of incident gout by obesity status over 18 years of follow-up, and the impact of obesity on the age at gout onset, among 15,533 participants of the Campaign Against Cancer and Heart Disease study, which began in 1989. They also investigated whether obesity is related to age at disease onset. The 18-year risk of incident gout was assessed based on obesity status (body mass index >30 kg/m²) at baseline.
The investigators found that 517 individuals developed incident gout, and the mean age at onset was 59.3 years. At baseline, the prevalence of obesity was 16.2 percent. As compared with nonobese individuals, those who were obese at baseline developed gout 3.1 years earlier, and individuals who were obese at age 21 years developed gout 11 years earlier. The 18-year risk of gout was nearly two-fold higher (adjusted incidence ratio, 1.92) in obese individuals, compared to those who were not obese at baseline.
"Obesity is not only a risk factor for incident gout but is associated with an earlier age at gout onset," the authors write.
Abstract
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