title: Primary knee arthrodesis for severe crystalline arthropathy.
abstract: Gout is a common form of inflammatory arthritis involving deposition of monosodium urate crystals within a diarthroidal joint. In this article, we report the case of a 54-year-old man who had severe, uncontrolled gout and presented with a 10-year history of knee pain. On consideration of all patient factors, including age, desired functional level, significant bone loss, periarticular soft-tissue masses, significant ligamentous instability, and difficult access to health care, knee arthrodesis was the surgery of choice. A knee fusion for gouty arthritis allowed the patient to have a stable, pain-free knee.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Warren Alpert Medical School, Brown University/Rhode Island Hospital, Providence, Rhode Island. bvopat@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Bryan G
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Vopat
authors.forename: Scott A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Ritterman
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kayiaros
authors.forename: Lee E
authors.initials: LE
authors.lastname: Rubin
mesh_terms: D015210:Arthritis, Gouty / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D001174:Arthrodesis / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016896:Treatment Outcome