Nurse-led gout management improves patient-centred outcomes

Research study finds people with significantly lower rates of flare-ups and nodes in managed intervention group

Gout is an arthritis caused by the formation of sodium urate crystals. It is associated with pain, joint damage, subcutaneous nodules, poor quality of life and increased mortality.

Urate-lowering drugs dissolve existing crystals and prevent new ones. Health promotion addresses risk factors, such as high alcohol intake. Half of those with gout receive urate lowering treatment in the UK. This randomised control trial compared nurse-led gout care to usual general practitioner (GP) care.

Research nurses were trained in management of gout, including a protocol for urate lowering medicines, and 517 patients with gout were randomly assigned to nurse (the intervention) or GP-led care (the control).

Greater uptake

At two years follow-up, the intervention group had greater uptake and adherence to