PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Mandell, Brian F.
AU  - Dore, Robin K.
TI  - The gout diagnosis
DP  - 2008 Jul 01
TA  - Cleveland Clinic Journal of Medicine
PG  - S17--S21
VI  - 75
IP  - 7 suppl 5
4099  - http://www.ccjm.org/content/75/7_suppl_5/S17.short
4100  - http://www.ccjm.org/content/75/7_suppl_5/S17.full
SO  - Cleve Clin J Med2008 Jul 01; 75
AB  - Synovial fluid aspiration and analysis is the gold standard for making the diagnosis of gout but is not always performed when indicated in clinical practice. In clinical situations when joint aspiration simply cannot be performed, a presumptive (or clinical) diagnosis of gout may be made in consultation with published recommendations and criteria from expert societies. A thorough patient history and physical examination are critical to a presumptive diagnosis of gout, as is serum urate measurement at the time of an acute attack and at follow-up 2 weeks later.