Colchicine for Gout Pain

Gout is a disease caused by an excess of uric acid in the blood.  Uric acid crystals form in the liquid of the joints, causing pain, redness and swelling.  A gout flare-up is painful and debilitating.  As well as the joints, gout particularly affects the small bones of the feet.

Gout is sometimes called gout arthritis.  Incidences of the disease have increased in the past few decades in the West, probably due to changes in the diet.  Gout was once called the disease of kings or the rich man’s disease.  Excessive alcohol, seafood and meat consumption can cause gout flare-ups. 

If you suffer from gout, you can get fast and effective relief with colchicine.  Colchicine is a natural substance, an extract of a European plant called autumn crocus or meadow saffron.  It is available in the United States as a prescription drug, but can also be administered intravenously.

When you begin taking colchicine you will feel quick relief.  Two-thirds of the gout sufferers who take it experience relief within twenty four hours.  Colchicine does not cure gout, but it does mitigate the symptoms and the pain.  Following the dosage schedule is important.  If you miss a dose, wait until it is time to take the next dose. 

This fast acting anti-gout medication was approved by the Food and Drug Administration, the FDA in 2009 for use in the U.S.  Exactly how colchicine relieves gout is not known.  It is an anti-inflammatory drug that blocks the migration of the phagocytes to the joints, to decrease the swelling and subsequently the pain of gout.  Colchicine is also used as an anti-inflammatory drug in the treatment of Behcet’s disease. 

Extract of autumn crocus or meadow saffron has been used for the relief of gout for centuries.  But a new use for colchicine may be cancer treatment.  Colchicine attaches itself to tubulin, which operates to direct cells during mitosis.  It actually prevents mitosis by blocking the cells that divide most rapidly.  And those cells are generally cancer cells. 

If you suffer from the painful flare-ups caused by gout, try colchicine!