Sex differences in cytokines and adipokines in obese patients with PsA and controls undergoing a weight loss intervention.

OBJECTIVE: In this post hoc analysis of a previously published study, we compared cytokines and adipokine levels in women and men with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) at baseline (BL) and 6 months (M6) following a weight loss intervention. METHODS: Patients with PsA (n=41) between 25 and 75 years of age, with body mass index (BMI)≥33 kg/m2 were included in a weight loss intervention with a very low energy diet (VLED) for 12 or 16 weeks depending on BL BMI<40 or ≥40 kg/m2. As controls (n=39), obese individuals, already planned for VLED treatment were recruited and matched for sex, age and weight to the patients with PsA. Cytokines and adipokines were measured at BL and M6. RESULTS: At BL, serum levels of interleukin (IL)-23, leptin and high molecular weight-adiponectin were higher in women with PsA compared with men, whereas serum levels of interferon (IFN)-γ, IL-12/IL-23 p40 and IL-13 were significantly lower in women. Serum IL-23 was significantly reduced at M6 compared with BL in women but not in men with PsA. In women with PsA, the reduction in IL-23 at M6, ∆IL-23, were positively correlated with ∆Disease Activity Score 28 C reactive protein (CRP) (Spearman's correlation (rS)=0.486, p=0.016), ∆CRP (rS=0.468, p=0.021), ∆leptin (rS=0.683, p<0.001) and negatively correlated with ∆total-adiponectin (rS=-0.433, p=0.035). Also in women, ∆Disease Activity in Psoriatic Arthritis was positively correlated with ∆tumour necrosis factor-α (rS=0.417, p=0.034), ∆IL-1ß (rS=0.550, p=0.034), ∆IFN-γ (rS=0.414, p=0.035) and ∆leptin (rS=0.410, p=0.038). None of these correlations were significant in men with PsA. CONCLUSIONS: Women and men with PsA differed with regard to serum levels of cytokines and adipokines before and after weight loss.

Gender differences in illness perceptions and disease management in patients with gout, results from a questionnaire study in Western Sweden.

BACKGROUND: Aims were to examine gender differences in patients with gout with regard to a) self-reported gout severity, b) illness perceptions (IP), c) impact on daily activities and Quality of Life (QoL), d) advice from healthcare professionals, e) having changed dietary- or alcohol habits. METHODS: Adult patients with gout identified in primary and secondary care in Sweden between 2015 and 2017 (n = 1589) were sent a questionnaire about demographics, gout disease severity, IP (using the Brief Illness Perception Questionnaire, (B-IPQ)) and disease management. T-tests, Chi square tests, ANalysis Of VAriance (ANOVA) and linear regression models were used for gender comparisons. RESULTS: Eight hundred sixty-eight patients responded to the questionnaire. Women, n = 177 (20%), experienced more severe gout symptoms (p = 0.011), albeit similar frequencies of flares compared to men. Women experienced modest but significantly worse IP with regard to consequences, identity, concerns and emotional response (p < 0.05) as well as daily activities such as sleeping (p < 0.001) and walking (p = 0.042) and QoL (p = 0.004). Despite this and a higher frequency of obesity in women (38 vs 21%, P < 0.001) and alcohol consumption in men (p < 0.001), obese women had received significantly less advice regarding weight reduction (47 vs 65%, p = 0.041) compared to obese men. On the other hand, women reported having acted on dietary advice to a larger degree. CONCLUSIONS: Despite only modestly worse gout severity and perception, women appear to have been given less information regarding self-management than men. These gender differences should be given attention and addressed in clinical care.

Incident Gout and Risk of First-Time Acute Coronary Syndrome: A Prospective, Population-Based Cohort Study in Sweden.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the risk of first-time acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in a large cohort of primary and secondary care patients with incident gout compared to the general population. METHODS: Using register data for the period 2007-2017, we conducted a prospective, population-based cohort with 20,146 patients with incident gout (mean age 65.6 years; 67.4% male) and 83,517 matched population controls without prior history of coronary heart disease. We calculated incidence rates (IRs) and hazard ratios (HRs) adjusted for baseline comorbidities and dispensed prescriptions. In a sensitivity analysis, we included gout cases and controls with no previously diagnosed comorbidity (6,075 cases and 44,091 controls). RESULTS: The IR of first-time ACS was significantly increased in the gout cohort compared to controls (9.1 versus 6.3 of 1,000 person-years). Unadjusted Cox regression showed that gout patients had higher risk of first-time ACS compared to controls (HR 1.44 [95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.33-1.56]), with a higher HR in women (HR 1.64 [95% CI 1.41-1.90]) than in men (HR 1.36 [95% CI, 1.24-1.50]). In multivariable analysis, the risk diminished but remained significant (HR 1.15 [95% CI 1.06-1.25]). The risk was similar in the sensitivity analysis (HR 1.20 [95% CI 1.01-1.44]) and still higher in women (HR 1.34 [95% CI 0.86-2.08]) than in men (HR 1.18 [95% CI 0.97-1.44]). CONCLUSION: Patients with incident gout have a 44% increased risk of first-time ACS, higher in women than in men. This risk is largely explained by the underlying comorbidities, but there is still a modestly increased risk that may be due to gout-related factors.

Professionals' perspectives on existing practice and conditions for nurse-led gout care based on treatment recommendations: a qualitative study in primary healthcare.

BACKGROUND: Gout affects nearly 2 % of the population and is associated with repeated painful flares of arthritis. Preventive urate-lowering therapy is widely available, but only one third of patients receive adequate treatment. Lack of knowledge among healthcare professionals and patients within primary healthcare are implicated as partial explanations for this undertreatment. Nurse-led care has proved to be an effective model when treating patients with gout, but there is a need for more knowledge about factors that can be expected to influence the future implementation of such care. The aim of this study was to describe factors influencing existing gout care in primary healthcare and the conditions for a future implementation of nurse-led gout care based on national treatment recommendations. METHODS: In this qualitative study, focus group discussions with 56 nurses and physicians and individual interviews with eight managers were conducted at nine primary healthcare units in central Sweden. A deductive qualitative content analysis based on the main constructs of the framework Integrated Promoting Action on Research Implementation in Health Services was followed by an inductive analysis within the frames of the main constructs: innovation, recipients and context. RESULTS: Gout-related contacts with primary healthcare was described as being patient initiated, diagnostics was in some respects complex and nurse-led care was experienced as a favourable primary healthcare model in general (innovation). Gout was seen as a low-priority condition with acute flares and there was inadequate knowledge of gout, including preventive treatment (recipients). Primary healthcare was perceived as having a holistic but fragmented responsibility for gout care, recommendations against keeping waiting lists complicated follow-up appointments and a need for motivation and support when introducing new practices was emphasised (context). CONCLUSION: In this study, investigating the perspective of professionals, several factors were found to influence existing gout care. It will be crucial to target these factors in the development of a future implementation strategy.

Incident Gout: Risk of Death and Cause-Specific Mortality in Western Sweden: A Prospective, Controlled Inception Cohort Study.

Background: Excess mortality in gout has been attributed to cardiovascular diseases (CVD). Considering the decline in CVD mortality in the general population, we wanted to evaluate overall mortality in gout and cause-specific contributions to mortality beyond CVD and temporal trends. Methods: All incident cases of gout between 2006 and 2015 in western Sweden and 5 population controls per case matched for age, sex, and county were identified. Comorbidities were identified for 5 years preceding the index date. Follow-up ended at death, migration, or end of study on December 2017. Effect of gout on death risk was calculated using COX regression on the whole population and stratified by sex, adjusted for demographics, and comorbidities. Death incidence rates were compared between the two time periods, 2006-2010 and 2011-2015. Results: We identified 22,055 cases of incident gout and 98,946 controls, median age (Q1, Q3) 69-68 (57, 79/56, 78) years and 67.6-66.5% males. Except for dementia, all comorbidities were significantly more common at baseline among gout cases. Overall, the risk for death in incident gout was neither increased overall nor in men, but women had a 10% elevated risk. In adjusted models for cause-specific mortality, death from CVD, renal disease, and digestive system diseases were significantly increased in the total gout population while death from dementia, cancer, and lung diseases were significantly decreased. There were no significant differences in overall incident death rate ratios between cases and controls in the two time periods examined. Conclusions: An increased risk for CVD, renal disease, and diseases of the digestive system in patients with gout highlights the importance of addressing CVD risk factors in gout management. Gout was associated with reduced mortality from dementia, which may have implications on urate lowering therapy and possible effects on dementia risk.

Association between perinatal factors and future risk for gout-a nested case-control study.

BACKGROUND: Increased level of urate is the strongest risk factor for gout development but since only a minority of hyperuricemics are affected by gout, other pathogenic factors must be considered. Low birth weight is associated with future morbidities causing hyperuricemia, such as diabetes and renal disease. The purpose of this study was to investigate if, and to what extent, maternal and perinatal factors, including birth weight, are associated with future risk of being diagnosed with gout. METHODS: A population-based retrospective nested case-control registry study based on regional and national health care registers in Sweden. All incident cases of gout born in 1973 and onward who had received ≥1 diagnosis of gout from 2000 through 2019 in the region of western Sweden were included. Up to 5 non-gout controls were matched to each case by age, sex, and county at the year of first gout diagnosis. A range of maternal, gestational, and perinatal factors were analyzed for their potential association to future gout development. This included the health of the mother, gestational length, birth weight, number of siblings, and congenital malformations. RESULTS: Maternal diabetes, any congenital malformation, and being small for gestational age were factors that significantly increased the risk for future gout development, odds ratio (95% CI) 3.1 (1.3 to 7.4) (p=0.01), 1.33 (1.04 to 1.7) (p=0.02), and 1.75 (1.3 to 2.3) (p<.0001), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, maternal diabetes and being small for gestational age increased the risk for future gout development in young adults. As of today, these conditions are becoming more prevalent and may contribute to the ongoing gout epidemic. These results require both confirmation and further delineation of underlying mechanisms.

Association between serum urate and CSF markers of Alzheimer's disease pathology in a population-based sample of 70-year-olds.

INTRODUCTION: The relationship between urate and biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathophysiology has not been investigated. METHODS: We examined whether serum concentration of urate was associated with cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers, amyloid beta (Aß)42, Aß40, phosphorylated tau (p-tau), total tau (t-tau), neurofilament light (NfL), and Aß42/Aß40 ratio, in cognitively unimpaired 70-year-old individuals from Gothenburg, Sweden. We also evaluated whether possible associations were modulated by the apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 allele. RESULTS: Serum urate was positively associated with Aß42 in males (ß = 0.55 pg/mL, P = .04). There was a positive urate-APOE ε4 interaction (1.24 pg/mL, P interaction = .02) in relation to Aß42 association. The positive urate and Aß42 association strengthened in male APOE ε4 carriers (ß = 1.28 pg/mL, P = .01). DISCUSSION: The positive association between urate and Aß42 in cognitively healthy men may suggest a protective effect of urate against deposition of amyloid protein in the brain parenchyma, and in the longer term, maybe against AD dementia.

Cardiovascular risk factors in gout, psoriatic arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis: a cross-sectional survey of patients in Western Sweden.

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to compare traditional (trad) cardiovascular risk factors (CVRFs) among patients with gout, psoriatic arthritis (PsA), rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and ankylosing spondylitis (AS) stratified by sex. METHODS: A survey was sent to patients with gout (n=1589), PsA (n=1200), RA (n=1246) and AS (n=1095). Patients were retrieved from Sahlgrenska University Hospital, the hospitals of Uddevalla and Skövde, and 12 primary care centres in Western Sweden. The prevalence of self-reported trad-CVRFs was compared between diagnoses by age standardisation with the 2018 population of Sweden as the standard population. RESULTS: In total, 2896 (56.5%) of 5130 patients responded. Hypertension was the most frequently found comorbidity, reported by 65% of patients with gout, 41% with PsA, 43% with RA and 29% with AS. After age standardisation, women and men with gout had significantly more obesity (body mass index ≥30 kg/m2), hypertension, diabetes, hyperlipidaemia and multiple trad-CVRFs, compared with those with PsA, RA and AS. Obesity was significantly more common in PsA than in RA. In women, obesity, hypertension and multiple trad-CVRFs were more frequently reported in PsA than in RA and AS, whereas similar prevalence of CVRFs and coexistence of multiple trad-CVRFs were found in men with PsA, RA and AS. CONCLUSIONS: Women and men with gout had the highest prevalence of trad-CVRFs. Differences in occurrence of CVRFs by sex were found in patients with PsA, RA and AS. In women, patients with PsA had higher occurrence of trad-CVRFs than those with RA and AS, whereas in men the distribution of CVRFs was similar in PsA, RA and AS.

Impact of psoriasis disease activity and other risk factors on serum urate levels in patients with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis-a post-hoc analysis of pooled data from three phase 3 trials with secukinumab.

OBJECTIVES: Our aims were to determine if the Psoriasis Area Severity Index (PASI) score and serum urate (SU) levels were associated at baseline and whether the change in PASI score during 12 weeks of treatment resulted in a significant change in SU, adjusted for relevant confounders. METHODS: Data from patients with psoriasis/PsA (n = 1042/204) in three phase 3 randomized control trials treated with secukinumab (dose 300 mg, n = 628) or placebo (n = 414) were pooled. At baseline, values for SU, PASI and the following covariates were assessed: age, sex, BMI, estimated glomerular filtration rate, and medication with diuretics. To assess the changes in PASI (ΔPASI) and SU (Δurate), the differences (week 12 minus baseline) in patients receiving the active drug were used. Multivariable linear regression, adjusting for covariates, was used to assess the association between PASI and SU at baseline with all patients pooled and to assess the association between Δurate and ΔPASI over 12 weeks of treatment with secukinumab. RESULTS: The degree of skin involvement of psoriasis showed a statistically significant, albeit modest, association with SU (R 2 = 0.014, P < 0.0001 univariately), whereas known risk factors for hyperuricaemia had a much larger impact cross-sectionally at baseline (R 2 = 0.33, P < 0.0001). Furthermore, a substantial improvement in PASI score resulted in only a modest decrease of SU over 12 weeks of treatment with secukinumab (R 2 = 0.014, P < 0.0001 univariately). CONCLUSIONS: There is a statistically significant, albeit modest, association with both extent and change in PASI score and SU in patients with psoriasis, compatible with a potential pathophysiological relationship between urate and psoriasis. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ERASURE: clinicaltrials.gov, https://clinicaltrials.gov, NCT01365455; FIXTURE: clinicaltrials.gov, https://clinicaltrials.gov, NCT01358578; SCULPTURE: clinicaltrials.gov, https://clinicaltrials.gov, NCT01406938.

Incidence of extra-articular manifestations in ankylosing spondylitis, psoriatic arthritis and undifferentiated spondyloarthritis: results from a national register-based cohort study.

OBJECTIVES: To estimate the incidence and strength of association of extra-articular manifestations [EAMs, here: anterior uveitis (AU), IBD and psoriasis] in patients with AS, undifferentiated SpA (uSpA) and PsA, compared with controls. METHODS: Three mutually exclusive cohorts of patients aged 18-69 years with AS (n = 8517), uSpA (n = 10 245) and PsA (n = 22 667) were identified in the Swedish National Patient Register 2001-2015. Age-, sex- and geography-matched controls were identified from the Swedish Population Register. Follow-up began 1 January 2006, or six months after the first SpA diagnosis, whichever occurred later, and ended at the first date of the EAM under study, death, emigration, 70 years of age, and 31 December 2016. Incidence rates (IRs) and incidence rate ratios were calculated for each EAM, and stratified by sex and age. RESULTS: Incidence rate ratios for incident AU, IBD and psoriasis were significantly increased in AS (20.2, 6.2, 2.5), uSpA (13.6, 5.7, 3.8) and PsA (2.5, 2.3, n.a) vs controls. Men with AS and uSpA had significantly higher IRs per 1000 person-years at risk for incident AU than women with AS (IR 15.8 vs 11.2) and uSpA (IR 10.1 vs 6.0), whereas no such sex difference was demonstrated in PsA or for the other EAMs. CONCLUSIONS: AU, followed by IBD and psoriasis, is the EAM most strongly associated with AS and uSpA. Among the SpA subtypes, AS and uSpA display a largely similar pattern of EAMs, whereas PsA has a considerably weaker association with AU and IBD.

The absolute risk of gout by clusters of gout-associated comorbidities and lifestyle factors-30 years follow-up of the Malmö Preventive Project.

BACKGROUND: Gout is predicted by a number of comorbidities and lifestyle factors. We aimed to identify discrete phenotype clusters of these factors in a Swedish population-based health survey. In these clusters, we calculated and compared the incidence and relative risk of gout. METHODS: Cluster analyses were performed to group variables with close proximity and to obtain homogenous clusters of individuals (n = 22,057) in the Malmö Preventive Project (MPP) cohort. Variables clustered included obesity, kidney dysfunction, diabetes mellitus (DM), hypertension, cardiovascular disease (CVD), dyslipidemia, pulmonary dysfunction (PD), smoking, and the use of diuretics. Incidence rates and hazard ratios (HRs) for gout, adjusted for age and sex, were computed for each cluster. RESULTS: Five clusters (C1-C5) were identified. Cluster C1 (n = 16,063) was characterized by few comorbidities. All participants in C2 (n = 750) had kidney dysfunction (100%), and none had CVD. In C3 (n = 528), 100% had CVD and most participants were smokers (74%). C4 (n = 3673) had the greatest fractions of obesity (34%) and dyslipidemia (74%). In C5 (n = 1043), proportions with DM (51%), hypertension (54%), and diuretics (52%) were highest. C1 was by far the most common in the population (73%), followed by C4 (17%). These two pathways included 86% of incident gout cases. The four smaller clusters (C2-C5) had higher incidence rates and a 2- to 3-fold increased risk for incident gout. CONCLUSIONS: Five distinct clusters based on gout-related comorbidities and lifestyle factors were identified. Most incident gout cases occurred in the cluster of few comorbidities, and the four comorbidity pathways had overall a modest influence on the incidence of gout.

[Consequences of Gout and Hyperuricemia]. / Gikt och hyperurikemi starkt associerade med folksjukdomar.

Hyperuricemia (HU) and gout are strongly associated with CVD, associations that are most likely due to shared etiologies rather than causality. HU is for example causally related to the metabolic syndrome and in particular to obesity. Gout and HU can both be caused by and lead to decreased kidney function. On the other hand, there are observational data suggesting that HU may protect against neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer and Parkinson's disease. Ongoing RCTs with urate and urate lowering therapy (ULT) will help to resolve some of these controversies. Nevertheless, gout is a "curable disease" by ULT, a treatment which in adequate doses may also have positive effect on several associated co-morbidities.

[Large health benefits can be achieved by better treatment of gout]. / Stora hälsovinster att uppnå med bättre behandling av gikt.

Urate lowering therapy (ULT) should, according to recent guidelines, be initiated in the majority of cases already after the first attack of gout. Allopurinol is the first line choice of ULT and should be started with low dose, which is increased until the treatment target is reached. The treatment target should be a blood urate of < 360 µmol/l or < 300 µmol/l (in the presence of topfi), which should be maintained until topfi have resolved. NSAID/cox-inhibitors, colchicine and glucocorticoids are all valid short-term treatments of gout attacks. ULT should not be paused/terminated during attacks and can be initiated during an attack that is adequately treated. Recent RCTs of ULT treatment have demonstrated the importance of thorough and adequate information to the patient and regular follow-up until treatment targets are reached. Such a strategy improve both compliance and outcomes of ULT treatment.

[Gout - a common and well known disease]. / Gikt ­ en känd och vanlig sjukdom.

Hyperuricemia is defined by a blood urate level > 405 µmol/L, the cut-off value at which urate forms crystals in vivo. In 15-20% these individuals develop gout, clinically characterized by attacks of acute arthritis, initially and most commonly affecting MTP 1 or other joints, tendons and soft tissues of the foot. These attacks usually subside within 1 to 2 weeks. Over time attacks occur more frequently and can transform into chronic arthritis characterized by tophi. The gold standard for diagnosis relies on identification of urate crystals by polarization microscopy in aspirated joint fluid. This procedure is rarely performed in primary care where the majority of patients are seen, and gout is usually diagnosed by clinical criteria. New imaging technologies (ultrasound, dual-energy CT) can be helpful when aspiration is not available and when the diagnosis is unclear. Gout has a prevalence of 1.7% and incidence rate of approximately 200 per 100000 person-years in Sweden, figures that increase over time.

Occupational exposure to inorganic dust and risk of gout: a population-based study.

BACKGROUND: Risk factors operating independently of hyperuricemia could be of importance in determining why only a minority of people with hyperuricemia develop gout. Exposure to inorganic dust has been linked to other inflammatory diseases and could influence the development of gout. OBJECTIVES: To evaluate if occupational exposure to inorganic dust increases the risk of gout. METHODS: Individuals aged 30-65 years with a first gout diagnosis in 2006-2012 in the population-based healthcare database of the Western Swedish Healthcare Region (VEGA) and population controls matched by age and sex were included. Data on occupation was collected from the Swedish occupational register. Exposure status was assigned by means of a job exposure matrix. Data on gout-related comorbidities was collected from VEGA. Alcohol use disorder and obesity were related both to gout and exposure to inorganic dust and were adjusted for in multivariate analyses. ORs were calculated using conditional logistic regression. RESULTS: 5042 gout cases and 20 682 controls were included. Exposure to inorganic dust was associated with gout in both unadjusted (OR 1.12, 95% CI 1.04 to 1.20) and multivariate (OR 1.08, 95% CI 1.00 to 1.16) analyses of the whole population. In sex-stratified multivariate analyses, dust exposure was significantly associated with gout in women (adjusted OR 1.26, 95% CI 1.05 to 1.51), but not in men (adjusted OR 1.05, 95% CI 0.97 to 1.13). CONCLUSIONS: We describe for the first time an association between exposure to inorganic dust and gout. After adjusting for confounders, the findings were statistically significant for women but not for men.

Global epidemiology of gout: prevalence, incidence, treatment patterns and risk factors.

Gout is the most common inflammatory arthritis and occurs when hyperuricaemia, sustained elevation of serum urate levels resulting in supersaturation of body tissues with urate, leads to the formation and deposition of monosodium urate crystals in and around the joints. Recent reports of the prevalence and incidence of gout vary widely according to the population studied and methods employed but range from a prevalence of <1% to 6.8% and an incidence of 0.58-2.89 per 1,000 person-years. Gout is more prevalent in men than in women, with increasing age, and in some ethnic groups. Despite rising prevalence and incidence, suboptimal management of gout continues in many countries. Typically, only a third to half of patients with gout receive urate-lowering therapy, which is a definitive, curative treatment, and fewer than a half of patients adhere to treatment. Many gout risk factors exist, including obesity, dietary factors and comorbid conditions. As well as a firmly established increased risk of cardiovascular disease and chronic kidney disease in those with gout, novel associations of gout with other comorbidities have been reported, including erectile dysfunction, atrial fibrillation, obstructive sleep apnoea, osteoporosis and venous thromboembolism. Discrete patterns of comorbidity clustering in individuals with gout have been described. Increasing prevalence and incidence of obesity and comorbidities are likely to contribute substantially to the rising burden of gout.

Association between serum level of urate and subclinical atherosclerosis: results from the SCAPIS Pilot.

BACKGROUND: Hyperuricemia is closely associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, it has not been definitively established whether this association is independent of traditional cardiovascular risk factors (CVRFs) and whether it is gender-dependent. The aim of this study was to investigate in a population-based cohort (age range, 50-64 years) stratified by sex the association between the serum urate (SU) concentration and subclinical atherosclerosis, as reflected in the coronary artery calcification (CAC) score, common carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT), and carotid plaque score. METHODS: The study involved participants in the Swedish CArdioPulmonary bioImage Study (SCAPIS) Pilot cohort (N = 1040; 48.8% males). This pilot cohort is part of the large population-based SCAPIS with 30,000 participants in the age range of 50-64 years, aimed at improving risk prediction for CVD. Subjects with a self-reported previous history of CVD (N = 68) or gout (N = 3) were excluded. The CAC score was assessed with the Agatston method using computed tomography. CIMT and carotid plaques were quantified by ultrasound. The associations between the SU quartiles and different levels of CAC, CIMT, and carotid plaques were assessed by multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS: Age, BMI, education level, smoking, physical activity, hs-CRP, hypertension, and dyslipidemia showed no differences between males and females, while CAC (score > 0) and diabetes were both twice as common in men than in women (58% vs 26% and 8% vs 4%, respectively). Higher SU quartiles were in both sexes associated with BMI, hs-CRP, and the prevalence of hypertension, and in women, they were also associated with the prevalence of dyslipidemia. The three upper quartiles of SU (>308µmol/L) were linked to higher CAC scores in men, when adjusting for CVRFs, but not in women. CIMT and carotid plaques showed no correlation to SU in either sex. CONCLUSIONS: Higher levels of SU are associated with the presence of CAC in men but not in women, whereas SU is not associated with CIMT or carotid plaques in either men or women. This implies that the biological effects of SU differ in men and women or that SU has varying effects on different vascular beds or during the different stages of the atherosclerotic process.

Dual energy CT findings in gout with rapid kilovoltage-switching source with gemstone scintillator detector.

BACKGROUND: A definite diagnosis of gout requires demonstration of monosodium urate crystals in synovial fluid or in tophi, which in clinical practice today seldom is done. Dual energy CT (DECT) has repeatedly been shown to be able to detect monosodium urate crystals in tissues, hence being an alternative method to synovial fluid microscopy. The vast majority of these studies were performed with CT scanners with two X-ray tubes. In the present study we aim to investigate if and at what locations DECT with rapid kilovoltage-switching source with gemstone scintillator detector (GSI) can identify MSU crystals in patients with clinically diagnosed gout. We also performed a reliability study between two independent readings. METHODS: Patients with new or established gout who had been examined with DECT GSI scanning of the feet at Sahlgrenska University Hospital, Mölndal between 2015 and 2018 were identified. Their medical records were sought for gout disease characteristics using a structured protocol. Urate deposits in MTP1, MTP 2-5, ankle/midfoot joints and tendons were scored semiquantatively in both feet and presence of artifacts in nail and skin as well as beam hardening and noise were recorded. Two radiologists performed two combined readings and scoring of the images, thus consensus was reached over the scoring at each occasion (Espeland et al., BMC Med Imaging. 2013;13:4). The two readings were compared with kappa statistics. RESULTS: DECT GSI could identify urate deposits in the feet of all 55 participants with gout. Deposits were identified in the MTP-joints of all subjects but were also present in ankle/midfoot joints and tendons in 96 and 75% respectively. Deposition of urate was predicted by longer disease duration (Spearman's Rho 0.64, p < .0001) and presence of tophi (p = 0.0005). Artifacts were common and mostly found in the nails (73%), a minority displayed skin artifacts (31%) while beam hardening and noise was rare. The agreement between the two readings was good (Κ = 0.66, 95% CI = 0.61-0.71). CONCLUSION: The validity of DECT GSI in gout is supported by the identification of urate in all patients with clinical gout and the good correlations with clinical characteristics. The occurrence of artifacts was relatively low with expected locations.