What is uric acid?
Uric acid is formed when so-called purines are broken down. These are building blocks of DNA or RNA, respectively, which contain the genetic information. In a healthy body, there is a balance between the production and breakdown of purines. However, various diseases, certain eating habits and the use of certain medications can disturb this balance. This changes the uric acid level.
Uric acid metabolism in the body
As part of the purine breakdown process, the body produces about one gram of uric acid per day. In the blood, it is mostly bound to proteins. Since it is a metabolic end product that the body does not need, uric acid is excreted. Eighty percent of this occurs through the kidneys (with the urine); the rest is excreted in the stool through the intestines.
An elevated uric acid level is called hyperuricemia. If the uric acid level is too low, it is called hypouricemia.
Uric acid & nutrition
- Meat, especially offal and skin of fish and poultry.
- fish, especially oil sardines, trout, tuna, salmon and sprat
- Pressed yeast
When to determine uric acid?
The doctor determines uric acid to detect a condition called primary hyperuricemia. This is a congenital, genetically determined disease, popularly known as gout. The doctor will also regularly measure uric acid during check-ups as the disease progresses.
Uric acid levels are also determined if diseases are suspected that have an influence on uric acid levels. These are, for example:
- chronic kidney disease
- @ hyperfunction of the parathyroid gland
- Alcoholism
- Dehydration (dehydration)
- Hemolytic anemia (anemia caused by increased decay of red blood cells)
- Leukemia
- Diabetes mellitus
- Lipid metabolism disorders
The physician can determine the uric acid concentration in the blood (serum or blood plasma) as well as in the urine.
For patients with a chronic disease, it is sometimes advisable to determine uric acid regularly by oneself at home. There are small, portable measuring devices for this purpose, similar to the commercially available measuring devices for blood glucose determination. Sometimes such a uric acid meter is already integrated into a blood glucose meter.
In the case of kidney disease, uric acid excretion can also be measured with a uric acid test strip. This is simply held in the collected urine. Depending on the uric acid concentration, the test field on the test strip changes color accordingly. The result can be read off from a reference color table.
Uric acid values: Table with normal values
The normal values for uric acid in the blood depend on age and gender. Please refer to the following uric acid table to find out how high these values are:
|
Age |
female |
male |
|
until 1 month |
1.0 – 4.6 mg/dl |
1.0 – 4.6 mg/dl |
|
1 to 12 months |
1.1 – 5.6 mg/dl |
1.1 – 5.6 mg/dl |
|
1 to 5 years |
1.8 – 5.6 mg/dl |
1.8 – 5.6 mg/dl |
|
1.8 – 5.9 mg/dl |
1.8 – 5.9 mg/dl |
|
|
12 to 14 years |
2.2 – 6.4 mg/dl |
3.1 – 7.0 mg/dl |
|
15 to 17 years |
2.4 – 6.6 mg/dl |
2.1 – 7.6 mg/dl |
|
from 18 years |
2.5 – 6.5 mg/dl |
3.0 – 6.9 mg/dl |
When is the uric acid level decreased?
An overdose of uric acid-lowering drugs is one of the most common reasons for a lowered uric acid level. Some other medications, for example estrogen preparations, can also cause lowered uric acid levels in laboratory tests.
The congenital disorder xanthinuria also causes uric acid to be too low. This is a disorder of the enzyme xanthine oxidase, which plays an important role in the breakdown of purines.
When is the uric acid level elevated?
Uric acid increased
If you would like to learn more about the causes and consequences of hyperuricemia in the body, read the article Uric acid elevated.
In addition to genetic, congenital primary hyperuricemia (gout), the following diseases or metabolic situations lead to elevated uric acid levels:
- severe renal dysfunction (renal insufficiency)
- increased breakdown of protein in the body, for example in the case of malnutrition, fasting cures, zero diet
- hyperfunction of the thyroid or parathyroid gland (hyperthyroidism, hyperparathyroidism)
- Deficiency of the enzyme glucose-6-phosphatase
- Diseases with excessive multiplication of blood cells (myeloproliferative diseases)
- EPH gestosis (various pregnancy diseases with high blood pressure, for example, preeclampsia)
- Acromegaly (excess of growth hormones)
- Chemotherapy and radiotherapy
- Poisoning, for example with lead
What to do in case of altered uric acid level?
There is no specific therapy for hypouricemia associated with the metabolic disorder xanthinuria. Those affected must drink plenty of fluids and eat a low-purine diet.
Hyperuricemia should be treated urgently. Otherwise, the deposited uric acid crystals can trigger a painful inflammatory reaction.
Since the body absorbs purines through food, elevated uric acid levels can be favorably influenced by a low-purine diet. In addition to a change in diet, normalization of body weight and abstention from alcohol are also recommended. If these basic measures are not sufficient, the doctor can prescribe drugs that lower uric acid.
Lowering uric acid
Read more about the treatment of elevated uric acid levels in the article Lowering uric acid.
