title: Prevalence and associations of gout and hyperuricaemia: results from an Australian population-based study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Despite gout and hyperuricaemia being major comorbid health issues worldwide, there is a knowledge gap regarding their impact in the Australian community.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To determine the prevalence and associations of self-reported medically diagnosed gout and hyperuricaemia in an Australian population-based cohort.
  
  
  METHODS
  The North West Adelaide Health Study is a longitudinal cohort study consisting of three stages of data collection. Each stage comprised a self-complete questionnaire, clinic assessment and computer-assisted telephone interview. In Stage 3 (2008-2010), participants were asked if a doctor had ever diagnosed them with gout. Additional data included demographics, comorbidities, laboratory data and Short Form 36 (SF-36). Participants were defined as having gout if they had self-reported medically diagnosed gout or were taking any gout-specific medication (allopurinol, colchicine, probenecid). Hyperuricaemia was defined as a serum uric acid (SUA) level >0.42 mmol/L in men and >0.34 mmol/L in women.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The overall prevalence of gout was 5.2%. Males were significantly more likely to have gout than females (8.5 vs 2.1%, P < 0.001). The overall prevalence of hyperuricaemia was 16.6%, with being male again identified as a significant risk factor (17.8 vs 15.4%, P < 0.01). Both gout and hyperuricaemia were associated with male sex, body mass index and renal disease after multivariable adjustment. There was no significant difference reported in quality of life (mean SF-36) scores in participants with gout compared to unaffected individuals.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The prevalence of gout and hyperuricaemia is high in the South Australian population. This study emphasises the need for optimal diagnosis and management of gout in Australia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology, The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ting
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: T K
authors.initials: TK
authors.lastname: Gill
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine and Pharmacology, University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Keen
authors.affiliation: School of Medicine, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: G R
authors.initials: GR
authors.lastname: Tucker
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology, The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.|The Health Observatory, Discipline of Medicine, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: C L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Hill
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D001315:Australia / Q000453:epidemiology; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D006073:Gout / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology*; D006074:Gout Suppressants / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D033461:Hyperuricemia / Q000453:epidemiology*; D016015:Logistic Models; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D015995:Prevalence; D011788:Quality of Life; D012307:Risk Factors; D057566:Self Report; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012923:Social Class; D014527:Uric Acid / Q000097:blood; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D006074:Gout Suppressants; D014527:Uric Acid
keywords: South Australia; epidemiology; gout; hyperuricaemia; prevalence