The treatment of gout is considered suboptimal, despite the availability of efficacious urate-lowering therapies.

Some research shows low rates of prescription of the therapy and there’s also evidence from a range of studies that between 10% and 46% of patients with a prescription fail to adhere to their medication.

Gout prevalence is increasing worldwide, particularly in wealthier countries, and the presence of comorbidities adds to the challenges of managing the disease, researchers say.

Type 2 diabetes, chronic kidney and renal disease, hypertension, hyperlipi­daemia and CVD are common physical comorbidities.