Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsSymptomsCommon CausesAdditional CausesDiagnosisTreatment & Home RemediesPain ManagementSeeking Medical Care
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Symptoms
Common Causes
Additional Causes
Diagnosis
Treatment & Home Remedies
Pain Management
Seeking Medical Care
Goutis a type ofinflammatory arthritisthat results from excess uric acid in the body. Gout typically affects the big toe but can also develop in other joints—including the hands andfingers.
This article discusses gout in the hands, including symptoms, causes, diagnosis, and treatment options.
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Symptoms of Gout in the Hands
Gout symptoms come and go. When you experience symptoms, it’s known as a “gout attack,” “flare-up,” or “flare.“Gout flarescan last for days or weeks.
Gout in the hands can cause sudden, severe pain. Other symptoms can include:
Over time, gout can cause bumps called “tophi” to develop on the finger joints. Tophi are a collection of uric acid crystals that accumulate underneath the skin.
What Causes Gout in the Hands?
Gout occurs from high levels of uric acid in the body.The first gout attack typically affects the big toe. However, the hands are a common site for subsequent flare-ups.
Many factors contribute to the development of gout, includingdiet, genetics, and other health conditions.
Diet
Examples include:
Genetics
Genetics can influence whether or not you will have high levels of uric acid in the body.However, not all people with high uric acid levels will develop gout.
Hand Injuries
Hand injuries do not directly cause gout, but some report that injuries have led to gout flare-ups.Gout can also lead to permanent joint damage and affect other hand structures, including the tendons that move your fingers.
Other Medical Conditions
Gout commonly occurs alongside other medical conditions, including the following:
Certain medications can contribute to higher levels of uric acid, such as:
Other Risk Factors
While they aren’t a direct cause of gout in the hand, there are additional risk factors that can contribute to the development of gout, such as:
Other Possible Reasons for Pain in the Hands
Symptoms of gout in the hands can be similar to other conditions, such as:
How Gout in the Hands Is Diagnosed
Gout in the hands is not as common as gout in other joints, such as the feet. Additional tests are usually required to help confirm the diagnosis, such as:
Treatment and Home Remedies for Gout in the Hands
Treatment for a gout flare-up in the hands includes a combination of medications and home remedies. These can include the following:
Medications that treat high levels of urate in the body are also prescribed, such as:
Alternative Treatments for Gout
Many people turn to alternative gout treatments, but more research is needed to confirm their validity.
How to Manage Pain From Gout in Your Hands
While you can’t prevent gout flares from occurring, there are things you can do to help decrease some of your risk factors, such as:
When to Contact a Healthcare Provider
If the gout in your hands is not improving with medications and home remedies, contact a healthcare provider. They may adjust the dosage of your current medicines or recommend different medications to try.
Call your healthcare provider immediately if you experience a fever during a gout flare. This can be a sign of infection.
Summary
Gout flares are primarily treated with medications, but lifestyle changes—such as avoiding foods high in purines and maintaining a healthy weight—can help reduce the frequency of these flare-ups.
12 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Society for Surgery of the Hand.Gout in hands.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Gout.Danve A, Sehra ST, Neogi T.Role of diet in hyperuricemia and gout.Best Pract Res Clin Rheumatol. 2021;35(4):101723. doi:10.1016%2Fj.berh.2021.101723Roman YM.Moving the needle in gout management: the role of culture, diet, genetics, and personalized patient care practices.Nutrients. 2022;14(17):3590. doi:10.3390%2Fnu14173590Abhishek A, Valdes AM, Jenkins W, Zhang W, Doherty M.Triggers of acute attacks of gout, does age of gout onset matter? A primary care based cross-sectional study.PLOS ONE. 2017;12(10):e0186096. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0186096National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases.Gout.Clebak KT, Morrison A, Croad JR.Gout: rapid evidence review.afp. 2020;102(9):533-538.Arthritis Foundation.Testing for gout.American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.Gout.Chi X, Zhang H, Zhang S, Ma K.Chinese herbal medicine for gout: a review of the clinical evidence and pharmacological mechanisms.Chinese Medicine. 2020;15(1):17.Chen PE, Liu CY, Chien WH, Chien CW, Tung TH.Effectiveness of cherries in reducing uric acid and gout: a systematic review.Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2019;2019:e9896757. doi:10.1155/2019/9896757National Institutes of Health.Vitamin C may reduce risk of gout.
12 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Society for Surgery of the Hand.Gout in hands.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Gout.Danve A, Sehra ST, Neogi T.Role of diet in hyperuricemia and gout.Best Pract Res Clin Rheumatol. 2021;35(4):101723. doi:10.1016%2Fj.berh.2021.101723Roman YM.Moving the needle in gout management: the role of culture, diet, genetics, and personalized patient care practices.Nutrients. 2022;14(17):3590. doi:10.3390%2Fnu14173590Abhishek A, Valdes AM, Jenkins W, Zhang W, Doherty M.Triggers of acute attacks of gout, does age of gout onset matter? A primary care based cross-sectional study.PLOS ONE. 2017;12(10):e0186096. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0186096National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases.Gout.Clebak KT, Morrison A, Croad JR.Gout: rapid evidence review.afp. 2020;102(9):533-538.Arthritis Foundation.Testing for gout.American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.Gout.Chi X, Zhang H, Zhang S, Ma K.Chinese herbal medicine for gout: a review of the clinical evidence and pharmacological mechanisms.Chinese Medicine. 2020;15(1):17.Chen PE, Liu CY, Chien WH, Chien CW, Tung TH.Effectiveness of cherries in reducing uric acid and gout: a systematic review.Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2019;2019:e9896757. doi:10.1155/2019/9896757National Institutes of Health.Vitamin C may reduce risk of gout.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
American Society for Surgery of the Hand.Gout in hands.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Gout.Danve A, Sehra ST, Neogi T.Role of diet in hyperuricemia and gout.Best Pract Res Clin Rheumatol. 2021;35(4):101723. doi:10.1016%2Fj.berh.2021.101723Roman YM.Moving the needle in gout management: the role of culture, diet, genetics, and personalized patient care practices.Nutrients. 2022;14(17):3590. doi:10.3390%2Fnu14173590Abhishek A, Valdes AM, Jenkins W, Zhang W, Doherty M.Triggers of acute attacks of gout, does age of gout onset matter? A primary care based cross-sectional study.PLOS ONE. 2017;12(10):e0186096. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0186096National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases.Gout.Clebak KT, Morrison A, Croad JR.Gout: rapid evidence review.afp. 2020;102(9):533-538.Arthritis Foundation.Testing for gout.American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.Gout.Chi X, Zhang H, Zhang S, Ma K.Chinese herbal medicine for gout: a review of the clinical evidence and pharmacological mechanisms.Chinese Medicine. 2020;15(1):17.Chen PE, Liu CY, Chien WH, Chien CW, Tung TH.Effectiveness of cherries in reducing uric acid and gout: a systematic review.Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2019;2019:e9896757. doi:10.1155/2019/9896757National Institutes of Health.Vitamin C may reduce risk of gout.
American Society for Surgery of the Hand.Gout in hands.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Gout.
Danve A, Sehra ST, Neogi T.Role of diet in hyperuricemia and gout.Best Pract Res Clin Rheumatol. 2021;35(4):101723. doi:10.1016%2Fj.berh.2021.101723
Roman YM.Moving the needle in gout management: the role of culture, diet, genetics, and personalized patient care practices.Nutrients. 2022;14(17):3590. doi:10.3390%2Fnu14173590
Abhishek A, Valdes AM, Jenkins W, Zhang W, Doherty M.Triggers of acute attacks of gout, does age of gout onset matter? A primary care based cross-sectional study.PLOS ONE. 2017;12(10):e0186096. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0186096
National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases.Gout.
Clebak KT, Morrison A, Croad JR.Gout: rapid evidence review.afp. 2020;102(9):533-538.
Arthritis Foundation.Testing for gout.
American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.Gout.
Chi X, Zhang H, Zhang S, Ma K.Chinese herbal medicine for gout: a review of the clinical evidence and pharmacological mechanisms.Chinese Medicine. 2020;15(1):17.
Chen PE, Liu CY, Chien WH, Chien CW, Tung TH.Effectiveness of cherries in reducing uric acid and gout: a systematic review.Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine. 2019;2019:e9896757. doi:10.1155/2019/9896757
National Institutes of Health.Vitamin C may reduce risk of gout.
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