[Gout as a systemic disease: systemic manifestations and comorbidities of hyperuricaemia].

Gout is a recurrent inflammation of one or more joints that occurs because of disposal monosodium urate crystals in joints and other structures in soft tissues. Gout is a common metabolic disorder characterized by chronic hyperuricemia, serum urate levels > or = 360 mmol/1 (> 6.8 mg/ dl), which exceeds the physiological threshold of saturation. Well known complications of gout are tophi, deforming arthropathy, urolithiasis, chronic urate nephropathy, acute uric nephropathy (usually secondary due to chemotherapy), avascular necrosis of the femoral head. The risk of developing gout is directly linked to the development of hyperuricemia. Numerous evidence-based clinical and epidemiological study of urinary acid as an independent risk factor for developing hypertension, cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, stroke and metabolic syndrome revalued the role of uric acid in human health and disease. In gout, as in other rheumatic disease, extraarticular manifestations are of utmost importance for morbidity and mortality.