[Gout in Togolese patients]

Abstract

A study was carried out to determine the frequency and semiological characteristics of gout in patients attending a hospital clinic in Lomé, Togo. Gout was diagnosed in 71 of the 1,821 patients seen from october 1989 through october 1991. Clinical findings and increased serum uric acid levels were the basis for the diagnosis of gout in 63 patients; in addition, in the eight other patients monosodium urate crystals were demonstrated in joint fluid. All gout patients were male and mean age at onset was 45 years. Mean duration of the disease was 8.5 years, Forty-seven patients had normal hemoglobin, whereas a hemoglobinopathy was present in the 24 other subjects (hemoglobin AS: 15 cases; hemoglobin AC: 7 cases; hemoglobin CC: 2 cases). Twenty-seven patients (38%) were obese and 24 (34%) had hypertension. Forty-six patients (65%) were habitual drinkers. Twenty patients (28%) had tophi. None of the patients had a history of renal colic. The other clinical features of the disease were similar to those seen in Western countries. Results of this study are in striking contradiction with the common belief that gout is exceedingly rare in black Africa.