Effects of bariatric surgery on gout incidence in the Swedish Obese Subjects study: a non-randomised, prospective, controlled intervention trial

• Published in: Annals of the rheumatic diseases Vol. 76; no. 4; pp. 688 - 693
• Main Authors: Maglio, Cristina, Peltonen, Markku, Neovius, Martin, Jacobson, Peter, Jacobsson, Lennart, Rudin, Anna, Carlsson, Lena M S
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BMJ Publishing Group LTD 01.04.2017; BMJ Publishing Group
• Series: Extended report
• Subjects: Adult; Arthritis; Bariatric Surgery; Blood pressure; Body Mass Index; Cardiovascular disease; Case-Control Studies; Clinical and Epidemiological Research; Clinical Medicine; Controlled Clinical Trials as Topic; Diabetes; Female; Follow-Up Studies; Gastrointestinal surgery; Gout - blood; Gout - epidemiology; Heart attacks; Humans; Hyperuricemia - blood; Hyperuricemia - epidemiology; Incidence; Klinisk medicin; Male; Medicin och hälsovetenskap; Middle Aged; Mortality; Obesity; Obesity - surgery; Patients; Prescription drugs; Protective Factors; Questionnaires; Registries; Rheumatism; Self report; Surveys and Questionnaires; Sweden - epidemiology; Time Factors; Ulcers; Uric acid; Uric Acid - blood; Weight control; Gout; Arthritis; Treatment
• ISSN: 0003-4967; 1468-2060; 1468-2060
• DOI: 10.1136/annrheumdis-2016-209958

ObjectivesTo assess the long-term effect of bariatric surgery on the incidence of gout and hyperuricaemia in participants of the Swedish Obese Subjects (SOS) study.MethodsThis report includes 1982 subjects who underwent bariatric surgery and 1999 obese controls from the SOS study, a prospective intervention trial designed to assess the effect of bariatric surgery compared with conventional treatment. None of the subjects had gout at baseline. An endpoint on gout incidence was created based on information on gout diagnosis and use of gout medications through national registers and questionnaires. Median follow-up for the incidence of gout was about 19 years for both groups. Moreover, the incidence of hyperuricaemia over up to 20 years was examined in a subgroup of participants having baseline uric acid levels <6.8 mg/dL.ResultsBariatric surgery was associated with a reduced incidence of gout compared with usual care (adjusted HR 0.60, 95% CI 0.48 to 0.75, p<0.001). The difference in absolute risk between groups was 3 percentage points at 15 years, and the number of subjects needed to be treated by bariatric surgery to prevent one incident gout event was 32 (95% CI 22 to 59). The effect of bariatric surgery on gout incidence was not influenced by baseline risk factors, including body mass index. During follow-up, the surgery group had a lower incidence of hyperuricaemia (adjusted HR 0.47, 95% CI 0.39 to 0.58, p<0.001). The difference in absolute risk between groups was 12 percentage points at 15 years, and the number of participants needed to be treated by bariatric surgery to prevent hyperuricaemia was 8 (95% CI 6 to 13).ConclusionsBariatric surgery prevents gout and hyperuricaemia in obese subjects.Trial registration numberNCT01479452; Results.