Gout vs Rheumatoid Arthritis - Difference and Comparison

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	Gout	Rheumatoid Arthritis
Age of onset:	usually over 35 yrs of age in men and after menopause in females	at any time in life
speed of onset:	sudden onset	Relatively rapid, over weeks to months
Joint symptoms:	joints are hot, red swollen and extremely painful	Joints are painful, swollen, and stiff
Pattern of joints that are effected:	Joint of the big toe most commonly affected. other joints affected are of ankle, heel, knee, wrist, fingers, elbow etc.	It often affects small and large joints on both sides of the body (symmetrical), such as both hands, both wrists or elbows, or the balls of both feet.
Duration of morning stiffness:	not seen	Morning stiffness lasts longer than 1 hour
Presence of symptoms affecting the whole body (systemic):	Chills and a mild fever along with a general feeling of malaise may also accompany the severe pain and inflammation	Frequent fatigue and a general feeling of being ill are present
Associated symptoms:	Tophi may form.These are large masses of uric acid crystals, which gets collected in the joints and damage it.They also gets collected in the bone and cartilage, such as in the ears.	Frequent feelings of "being sick inside," with fevers, weight loss, or involvement of other organ systems

1 Cause
2 Signs and symptoms
3 Location of joints involved
4 Prevalence
5 References

[edit] Cause

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a disease in which your own immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue, causing inflammation that damages your joints
On the other hand,Gout results from deposits of needle-like crystals of uric acid in connective tissue, joint spaces, or both. These deposits lead to inflammatory arthritis, causing swelling, redness, heat, pain, and stiffness in the joints. Gout accounts for about 5% of all cases of arthritis.

[edit] Signs and symptoms

RA usually causes pain or stiffness lasting for more than 30 minutes in the morning or after long rest and lack of activity. Stiffness due to gout is present only at the time of the attack.
RA is associated with symmetrical swelling e.g., both hands, both elbows, etc. whereas Gout either involves a single joint or involves the joints in an asymmetric pattern.
Most typically, RA symptoms include joint pain, swelling, tenderness, and redness of the joints; prolonged morning stiffness; and less range of movement. Some people also experience fever, weight loss, fatigue, and/or anemia .On the other hand the patient having Gout suddenly experiences a hot, red, swollen joint, caused by the formation of uric acid crystals between the joints. The attack often occurs at night and in a single joint, with the pain becoming more severe. Chills and a mild fever along with a general feeling of malaise may also accompany the severe pain and inflammation.
In Gout although the pain and swelling disappear with treatment, it almost always returns in the same joint or in another one. Whereas RA is a continuous and progressive disease with no remissions.

[edit] Location of joints involved

With RA, inflammation generally occurs in the knuckles and at the joints closest to your hands, nearer the base of your fingers. On the other hand, gout usually affects the joints in the big toe.Some other parts that could get affected by gout are ankle, heel, knee, wrist, fingers, elbow etc.

[edit] Prevalence

Adult men, particularly those between the ages of 40 and 50, are more likely to develop gout than women, who rarely develop the disorder before menopause. People who have had an organ transplant are more susceptible to gout.On the other hand, RA is much more common in women.