“Oh, my aching feet!” How many times have you found yourself yelling, “Oh, my aching feet,” but then shrugged it off, figuring that aching feet are a natural part of life? You don’t have to put up with aching feet.  Your podiatrist in Reston urges you to not ignore that ache in your feet.  When pain occurs, it is the first sign that something isn’t right, so a trip to Reston, Manassas & Leesburg Foot and Ankle Centers is in order.

Gout is a form of arthritis, and it can often cause extreme pain to your feet.  Approximately one million Americans suffer from gout, and although its source is a systemic problem within the body, there are some suggestions for how to treat gout that may help reduce your chance of having a gout flare-up. 

Diagnosis and Treatment

Because the joint inflammation of gout can resemble that of a joint infection or other form of arthritis, diagnosing gout requires removing a small amount of fluid from the joint and examining it for uric acid crystals.  Once diagnosis is made, your podiatrist in Reston can recommend a gout treatment plan to help:

• Stop acute attacks
• Rapidly relieve pain and inflammation
• Avert future attacks
• Prevent the development of tophi, kidney stones and kidney disease   

Gout treatment will most likely involve anti-inflammatory medications to relieve acute pain and inflammation, as well as urate-lowering drugs to control urate levels and prevent future attacks.

Other gout treatment strategies might include the following:

• Avoid foods with high purines, such as organ meats, anchovies, shellfish, bacon and gravies, and increasing intake of dairy foods.
• Avoid alcohol, which increases the production of urate and impairs excretion
• Lose weight to reduce blood urate levels
• Avoid medications that contribute to hyperuricema, including diuretics

With proper treatment by your Reston podiatrist, gout is one of the most controllable forms of arthritis.  So when pain occurs, don’t just deal with it, seek treatment immediately.