Ethnic differences in both gout risk and associations with modifiable behavioral factors exist, according a multiethnic cohort study published in The Journal of Rheumatology. Mika D. Thompson, MS, and colleagues analyzed gout incidence and associations with behavioral factors in a sample of 12,370 Black, 6,459 Native Hawaiian, 29,830 Japanese, 17,538 Latino, and 26,067 White patients. Compared with White patients, Native Hawaiians demonstrated the greatest risk for gout (HR, 2.21; 95% CI, 2.06- 2.38), followed by Black and Japanese participants. Alcohol use was tied to increased risk, with significantly greater effects seen for Japanese participants having three or more drinks per day (HR, 1.46; 95% CI, 1.27-1.66) or more than five beers per week (HR, 1.29; 95% CI, 1.17- 1.43) compared with Whites. Former smokers with 20 or more pack-years also experienced higher risk (HR, 1.14; 95% CI, 1.06-1.22). Higher diet quality was tied to lower gout risk, with the biggest effect seen for White participants (HRQ5 vs Q1: 0.84; 95% CI, 0.79- 0.90), while vitamin C was weakly associated with lower gout risk only for Japanese participants (HR, 0.91; 95% CI, 0.85-0.98).

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