Common Gout Medication May Lower Risk

• Researchers say that allopurinol and other drugs used to treat gout can help reduce heart attack and stroke risk.
• Experts say these medications help reduce inflammation, which can lower cardiovascular health risks.
• Diet can also be a key factor in the development of gout. Avoiding foods high in purines, such as red meat, can help lower risk.

Medications taken to treat gout can help people with that condition reduce their risk of heart attack and stroke.

In their findings, researchers from the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom said the proper doses of drugs such as allopurinol can help prevent heart attacks and strokes in people with gout.

They said the medication works by lowering the levels of urate in a person’s blood as well as dissolving the urate crystals deposited in their joints.

Gout is a form of inflammatory arthritis that can cause pain and swelling in joints. The condition occurs when high levels of urate build up in the body over a long period of time. Those deposits can form needle-shaped crystals in and around the joints.

Researchers said people with serum urate levels below 360 micromol/L experience fewer gout flares. They concluded that the lower urate levels are also associated with a lower risk of cardiovascular events.

“People with gout are at an increased risk of illnesses such as heart disease and stroke,” said Abhishek Abhishek, MD, a professor of rheumatology at the University of Nottingham’s School of Medicine who led the study, in a statement. “This is the first study to find that medicines such as allopurinol that are used to treat gout reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke if they are taken at the right dose.”

Abhishek noted that the right dosage of allopurinol can vary from person to person.

In March 2025, the Nottingham research team published a study on the anti-inflammatory medication, colchicine, which appeared to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke in people with gout.

The heart protective effects were observed during the first six months after they start taking urate-lowering medications such as allopurinol.

“As gout is an inflammatory condition, and as chronic inflammation is known to contribute to heart disease, it stands to reason that treatment of gout will help to lower the risk of heart disease in those affected patients,” said Cheng-Han Chen, MD, an interventional cardiologist and medical director of the Structural Heart Program at MemorialCare Saddleback Medical Center in California, who was not involved in the study.

“This study reaffirms the importance of appropriate treatment of gout to reduce other serious downstream risks such as heart disease,” Chen told Healthline.

In their latest study, the researchers analyzed primary care data from the Clinical Practice Datalink Aurum, involving nearly 110,000 participants, and linked hospital and mortality records between January 2007 and March 2021.

The participants studied were adults ages 18 or older who had been diagnosed with gout. The participants all had serum urate levels higher than 360 micromol/L. They were prescribed urate-lowering medications.

The researchers reported that participants who achieved a serum urate blood level lower than 360 micromol/L within 12 months of their first treatment had a higher five-year survival rate and a lower risk of a major adverse cardiovascular event than people whose urate blood levels were higher than 360 micromol/L.

They added that participants whose urate blood level dropped below 300 micromol/L had an even larger reduction in risks. Participants with lower urate blood levels also had fewer gout flares.

“Previous research from Nottingham showed treat-to-target urate lowering treatment prevents gout flares,” added Abhishek. “This current study provides an added benefit of reduced risk of heart attack, stroke, and death due to these diseases.”

Jison Hong, MD, a clinical associate professor of medicine at Stanford University, who was not involved in the study, said previous research has indicated that a person’s risk of heart attack and stroke increases 60 to 180 days after a gout flare.

“This is likely due to the large amount of systemic inflammation associated with gout flares,” Hong explained. “This is why treating to target for gout to prevent recurrent gout flares is associated with decreased risk for heart attacks.”

“Higher urate levels will trigger gout by forming crystals in joints and tissues, setting off inflammatory factors that can circulate throughout the body, including the heart,” added Chen.

“We know that this inflammation will contribute to heart disease over time. By lowering urate levels, allopurinol is likely decreasing the amount of inflammation throughout the body in patients with gout, potentially leading to decreased risk of heart attack or stroke.”

Gout is more common in men and older adults. Asian-Americans have reportedly shown the highest recent increase in the condition among ethnic groups.

Gout is a form of arthritis that affects the joints and can cause painful swelling. The condition commonly occurs in the big toe, foot, and ankle.

Gout has symptoms similar to those of rheumatoid arthritis, although rheumatoid arthritis can affect joints throughout the body. The symptoms include:

• redness or discoloration
• swelling
• joint pain

Gout can cause intense pain with flares lasting for one to two weeks. If left untreated, gout can eventually cause kidney damage.

Certain lifestyle factors can raise the risk of gout and rheumatoid arthritis. They include:

• smoking
• having overweight or obesity
• lack of exercise
• older age
• diet

There is no cure for gout, but there are medications that can reduce symptoms as well as blood urate levels.

One of the common medications prescribed for gout is the xanthine oxidase inhibitor allopurinol, which is sold under the brand names such as Aloprim and Zyloprim.

Allopurinol can cause side effects that last for a few days or sometimes weeks. The more common side effects include:

• diarrhea
• nausea
• increases in liver enzymes
• muscle pain
• fever
• drowsiness

Hong told Healthline that a combination of medications is the most effective initial treatment for gout flares, followed by lifelong treatment with allopurinol.

She noted that it can be difficult to convince people with gout to continue with medications after gout flares have subsided.

“Patients with gout often are not aware of the increased risk of heart attacks and strokes associated with the disease,” Hong said. “Most prefer not to take medications for gout long term since they think that the condition only causes self-limited episodes of painful joint inflammation and prefer not to take long-term medications.”

“This study gives patients with gout another important reason to be diligent with taking their prescribed medications such as allopurinol,” added Chen.

Diet can be a major factor in the development of gout. Certain foods high in purines, a naturally occurring substance, can raise uric acid levels and increase the risk of gout. These foods include:

Experts advise those with gout should eat plenty of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, low fat dairy, eggs, and legumes.

There have been discussions about whether coffee, vitamin C, and certain supplements can help manage gout symptoms. Acupuncture has also been suggested.