Gout, Stones, Vasculitis…Are They Really Connected?

Okay Everyone…I am officially stating for the record…

And just why am I having this revelation at the chipper age of 53?

Well, because over the past few weeks I’ve kinda felt that my condition and overall health have been kinda getting the best of me…a few cases in point…

• A flu bug that lasted for better than two weeks and that eventually my wife would catch…sorry honey.
• Pain in my left hand ( specifically starting with finger next to my thumb )
• Pain in my left foot…not too severe though…just annoying enough to know it was there

Well, here is something new that I think I may be suffering from and I’m not quite sure but suspect may be tied into my vascular condition.

Gout!

And just why do I think I may be suffering from Gout anyway? Well the pains that I experienced in my left hand and foot have been an on again and off again issue now for about a month now…and I would almost think suspect now that I have started to see commercials on television about a new treatment called Uloric .

Could my body be in cahoots with the drug manufacture of this product?

Anyway….I’m going to take you back now two years this past May and June…

I was in Orange Regional Medical Center…I was running a fever, I had intense stomach pains, I was dehydrated, I apparently had three stones in my system, and I had at least 10 to 12 doctors during this time trying to decide and come to a conclusive diagnosis about my condition

Did all of you happen to notice that in the above paragraph I had the words three stones in italics and in blue letters?

Well good for you if you did notice, and of course I had a reason for this.

At least I’d say better than 20 years ago I had an incident where I had come home from a previous job feeling just fine and then it could not have been ten minutes after I had been home that I started to have intense pain in my lower left quadrant.

This pain became so intense that by the time I was in the hospital ( again Orange Regional Medical Center which at this time was just called Horton Memorial Hospital ) I was actually in the fetal position in the hospital at this point and while I was in a whole world of new pain, I know that somewhere in that world I was feeling a bit embarrassed as the nurses were trying to have me go to the bathroom, and trying to give me pain meds…needless to say that neither of these things were happening.

Eventually after a short stay in the hospital, I had passed my first Kidney Stone.

A friend of mine at the time just happened to tell me that once you get s stone you can get them again…he may just have been right!

So, lets first take a look at just what a Kidney Stone actually is…

Overview

A kidney stone is a solid mass made up of tiny crystals. One or more stones can be in the kidney or ureter at the same time.

See also: Cystinuria

Alternative Names

Renal calculi; Nephrolithiasis; Stones – kidney

Causes

Kidney stones can form when urine contains too much of certain substances. These substances can create small crystals that become stones.

The biggest risk factor for kidney stones is dehydration.

Kidney stones may not produce symptoms until they begin to move down the tubes (ureters) through which urine empties into the bladder. When this happens, the stones can block the flow of urine out of the kidneys. This causes swelling of the kidney or kidneys, causing pain. The pain is usually severe.

Kidney stones are common. A person who has had kidney stones often gets them again in the future. Kidney stones often occur in premature infants.

Some types of stones tend to run in families. Certain kinds of stones can occur with bowel disease, ileal bypass for obesity, or renal tubule defects.

There are different types of kidney stones. The exact cause depends on the type of stone.

• Calcium stones are most common. They occur more often in men than in women, and usually appear between ages 20 – 30. They are likely to come back. Calcium can combine with other substances, such as oxalate (the most common substance), phosphate, or carbonate to form the stone. Oxalate is present in certain foods. Diseases of the small intestine increase the risk of forming calcium oxalate stones.
• Cystine stones can form in people who have cystinuria . This disorder runs in families and affects both men and women.
• Struvite stones are mostly found in women who have a urinary tract infection . These stones can grow very large and can block the kidney, ureter, or bladder.
• Uric acid stones are more common in men than in women. They can occur with gout or chemotherapy.

Other substances also can form stones.

Symptoms

The main symptom is severe pain that starts suddenly and may go away suddenly:

• Pain may be felt in the belly area or side of the back
• Pain may move to groin area (groin pain) or testicles (testicle pain)

Other symptoms can include:

I want to point out to everyone the bullet point above that talks about the different types of Kidney Stones and the particular bullet point Uric Acid…

Uric acid (or urate) is a heterocyclic compound of carbon , nitrogen , oxygen , and hydrogen with the formula C₅H₄N₄O₃.Uric acid is a chemical created when the body breaks down substances called purines. Purines are found in some foods and drinks, such as liver, anchovies, mackerel, dried beans and peas, beer, and wine. Purines are also a part of normal body substances, such as DNA.

Oh and just in case your wondering…Uric Acid has an extreme connection to Gout…and of course I’ll talk about that in the followup to this article…of which I did not set out to actually have.

So, see ya for part two.