Arthritis Health Center

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Some people with gout have continuing problems because they do not take their prescribed medicine. Although most people will need treatment for the rest of their lives to keep their uric acid levels in their blood normal, they may feel perfectly healthy most of the time and wonder why they should continue taking their medicine. If you stop taking your prescribed medicine, nothing may happen at first. But after a while, another gout attack is likely to occur. Without treatment, future attacks are likely to be more severe and occur more often.

Research is ongoing to develop new medicines to treat the symptoms of gout. Scientists also are studying which medicines lower uric acid levels safely.³

• Losartan is used to treat high blood pressure (hypertension), and it also lowers uric acid levels.
• Fenofibrate is used to control certain fats in the blood (triglycerides and very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol), and it may also increase elimination of uric acid by the kidneys.
• Urate oxidase may lower uric acid levels by changing uric acid into an absorbable molecule. This medicine is currently being evaluated in the United States.
• Y-700 medicines decrease the amount of uric acid the body makes. These medicines are being studied and may be used in people who cannot take allopurinol.