在美国 50 岁以上人群中,男性年发病率为 1.6 例/1000 人,而女性为 0.3 例/1000 人。[1]Abbott RD, Brand FN, Kannel WB, et al. Gout and coronary heart disease: the Framingham Study. J Clin Epidemiol. 1988;41:237-242.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3339376?tool=bestpractice.com 发病率随年龄增长而增加。男性痛风的年发病率从 1 例/1000 人(45 岁以下)增加到 1.8 例/1000 人(55-64 岁)。[2]Choi HK, Atkinson K, Karlson EW, et al. Purine-rich foods, dairy and protein intake and the risk of gout in men. N Engl J Med. 2004;350:1093-1103.http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa035700#t=articlehttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15014182?tool=bestpractice.com 痛风更常见于男性患者,绝经前妇女罕见。[3]Mikuls TR, Farrar JT, Bilker WB, et al. Gout epidemiology: results from the UK general practice research database, 1990-1999. Ann Rheum Dis. 2005;64:267-272.http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=1755343&blobtype=pdfhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15647434?tool=bestpractice.com 西方国家的患病率约为 1%,男性与女性比为 7:1-9:1;其中英国和德国的患病率为 1.4%。[4]Kramer HM, Curhan G. The association between gout and nephrolithiasis: the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey III, 1988-1994. Am J Kidney Dis. 2002;40:37-42.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12087559?tool=bestpractice.com[5]Annemans L, Spaepen E, Gaskin M, et al. Gout in the UK and Germany: prevalence, comorbidities and management in general practice. Annals Rheum Dis. 2008;67:960-966.http://ard.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/67/7/960http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17981913?tool=bestpractice.com 患病率随地域和种族变化存在差异。拥有欧洲血统的新西兰人,患病率为 3.6%。而对于毛利人,该病的患病率高达 6.4%。[3]Mikuls TR, Farrar JT, Bilker WB, et al. Gout epidemiology: results from the UK general practice research database, 1990-1999. Ann Rheum Dis. 2005;64:267-272.http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=1755343&blobtype=pdfhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15647434?tool=bestpractice.com[6]Bieber JD, Terkeltaub RA. Gout: on the brink of novel therapeutic options for an ancient disease. Arthritis Rheum. 2004;50:2004-2014.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15334451?tool=bestpractice.com[7]Klemp P, Stansfield SA, Castle B, et al. Gout is on the increase in New Zealand. Ann Rheum Dis. 997;56:22-26.http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=1752259&blobtype=pdfhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9059136?tool=bestpractice.com 在过去 20 年间,与使用利尿剂无关的痛风发病率已增加一倍。[8]Arromdee E, Michet CJ, Crowson CS, et al. Epidemiology of gout: is the incidence rising? J Rheumatol. 2002;29:2403-2406.http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12415600?tool=bestpractice.com 这种趋势可能与生活方式改变和肥胖增加有关。2000-2005 年间,在欧洲最常见的合并症为肥胖 (27.7%),但是在德国最常见的合并症则是糖尿病 (25.9%)。合并症的患病率往往随着血清尿酸水平 (sUA) 的增加而提高。sUA 水平和痛风发作频率呈正相关。在英国和德国,与 sUA<360 μmol/L (<6 mg/dL) 的患者相比,sUA 水平在 360-420 μmol/L (6-7 mg/dL) 之间时,痛风发作的比值比分别为 1.33 和 1.37;sUA>530 μmol/L (>9 mg/dL) 时则分别为 2.15 和 2.48 (P<0.01)。[5]Annemans L, Spaepen E, Gaskin M, et al. Gout in the UK and Germany: prevalence, comorbidities and management in general practice. Annals Rheum Dis. 2008;67:960-966.http://ard.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/67/7/960http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17981913?tool=bestpractice.com