Notice: Users may be experiencing issues with displaying some pages on stanfordhealthcare.org. We are working closely with our technical teams to resolve the issue as quickly as possible. Thank you for your patience.
New to MyHealth?
Manage Your Care From Anywhere.
Access your health information from any device with MyHealth. You can message your clinic, view lab results, schedule an appointment, and pay your bill.
ALREADY HAVE AN ACCESS CODE?
DON'T HAVE AN ACCESS CODE?
NEED MORE DETAILS?
MyHealth for Mobile
Gout Causes
What causes gout?
Gout is caused by too much uric acid in the blood (hyperuricemia). Most of the time, having too much uric acid isn't harmful. Many people with high levels in their blood never get gout. But sometimes when these levels in your blood are too high, the uric acid forms hard crystals in your joints. This causes pain and other symptoms.
In some cases, the exact cause isn't known. But inherited factors (genes) seem to play a role.
Gout can seem to flare up without specific cause. Or it can be brought on by:
- Being overweight, drinking too much alcohol, or eating too much meat and fish that are high in chemicals called purines.
- Medicines, such as (diuretics) or regular use of aspirin or niacin.
- Major illness or certain medical conditions, such as rapid weight loss or high blood pressure.
- Surgery.
- Having been born with a rare condition that causes high blood uric acid levels.