Uric acid
The Test
How is it used?
When is it requested?
The test is also used as a monitoring test when a patient has undergone chemotherapy or radiation, to learn whether uric acid levels are getting dangerously high. Monitoring can also be done when a patient is found to have gout or renal failure. Patients who have high uric acid levels are sometimes put on drugs to help lower uric acid levels.
What does the test result mean?
Increased concentrations of uric acid can cause crystals to form in the joints, which leads to the joint inflammation and pain characteristic of gout. Uric acid can also form crystals or kidney stones that can damage the kidneys.
There has been some discussion among doctors about the exact limits of a ‘normal’ test result for uric acid. The range of normal results is wide. Uric acid levels can vary every day in the same patient or throughout the year. Sometimes doctors will request several uric acid tests over a period of time to get a better idea of a patient’s level of uric acid.
Is there anything else I should know?
Aspirin (and other salicylates) have varying effects on uric acid. At low aspirin levels (as may occur in persons taking aspirin only occasionally), aspirin can increase blood uric acid. On the other hand, in high doses (as may be used to treat rheumatoid arthritis), aspirin actually lowers the concentration of uric acid.
For people who have uric acid kidney stones or gout, foods that are high in purine content should be avoided, including organ meats (like liver and kidneys), sardines and anchovies. Alcohol also should be avoided because it slows down the removal of uric acid from the body. Fasting, a starvation diet, and strenuous exercise all raise uric acid levels.
