Sex Differences in the Clinical Profile Among Patients With Gout: Cross-sectional Analyses of an Observational Study

Objective. Research findings in gout result predominantly from studies about men and might not be generalizable to women. To improve insight into sex differences in gout, our study compared clinical characteristics and comorbidities of female and male patients with gout, and explored the influence of menopause on these differences.

Methods. Data from patients referred to 2 rheumatology clinics and diagnosed with gout were used. Clinical characteristics and comorbidities of each sex were compared univariately. Sex difference in comorbidities were further explored in multivariate logistic regression analyses adjusting for age, BMI, smoking, and alcohol consumption in both the total group and in those with gout onset >= 55 years (as a surrogate for menopausal state).

Results. There were 954 patients, including 793 (83%) men, included. Women were on average older (65 vs 62 yrs), were more often obese (54% vs 36%), had a higher serum uric acid (sUA) level (0.53 vs 0.49 mmol/L), used diuretics more often (60% vs 30%), and consumed alcohol less frequently (47% vs 72%). Additionally, women more frequently had reduced renal function (64% vs 31%), hypertension (78% vs 56%), heart failure (23% vs 12%), and type 2 diabetes (39% vs 17%; all P < 0.05). In those with gout onset >= 55 years, differences in comorbidities were less pronounced and disappeared after adjusting for lifestyle.

Conclusion. Our study confirmed sex differences in clinical characteristics and comorbidities among newly diagnosed patients with gout, and revealed that sex differences in cornorbidities among those with gout onset beyond the age of female menopause were strongly attenuated and fully explained by lifestyle.