Clinical Profile and Patient-Doctor Communication in Gout Patients: A Feasibility Study

Purpose: To examine the clinical profile and patient-doctor communication in gout patients Patients and Methods: Between February and April 2022, a descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on gout patients referred to university clinics and municipal health institutions in central Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The inclusion criteria for participants were blood uric acid levels over 6 mg/dl for females and 7 mg/dl for males, and an age of 18 years or older. The research sample was recruited through a process known as convenience sampling. Frequencies and percentages were used to present categorical variables in this study. Results: A total of 58 patients were involved in this study. The mean age of the patients was 43.7 (14.7) years. Almost one-third of the patients (29.3%) were diagnosed by family medicine specialist. The mean duration of disease was 3.6 (3.5) years and the mean age at diagnosis was 38.4 (15.1) years. The most common complaint was joints pain accounting for 84.5%. The annual median number of attacks of gout before starting treatment was four and declined to two after the treatment. The most commonly used medications was colchicine (32.8%). Around one-fifth of the patients (22.4%) referred to nutritionist to treat gout. The most commonly discussed topic between the patients and their treating physicians was the nutrition plan and healthy life style accounting for 74.1%. The least commonly discussed topic between the patients and their treating physicians was stopping smoking accounting for 36.2%. The most commonly reported lifestyle measures applied by the patients to control gout were reducing eating legumes and red meat, accounting for 91.4% and 81.0%, respectively. Conclusion: Adequate treatment of acute gout attacks requires a multifaceted strategy that may include behavioral and dietary changes in addition to medication. Improvements in illness management and patient outcomes can also be achieved through effective physician-patient communication.