Allopurinol vs Colchicine
 | Allopurinol |  | Colchicine |  |
| Allopurinol is used to treat gout and certain types of kidney stones. It is also used to prevent increased uric acid levels in patients receiving cancer chemotherapy. These patients can have increased uric acid levels due to release of uric acid from the dying cancer cells. Allopurinol works by reducing the amount of uric acid made by the body. Increased uric acid levels can cause gout and kidney problems. | This medication is used to prevent or treat gout attacks (flares). Usually gout symptoms develop suddenly and involve only one or a few joints. The big toe, knee, or ankle joints are most often affected. Gout is caused by too much uric acid in the blood. When uric acid levels in the blood are too high, the uric acid may form hard crystals in your joints. Colchicine works by decreasing swelling and lessening the build up of uric acid crystals that cause pain in the affected joint(s). This medication is also used to prevent attacks of pain in the abdomen, chest, or joints caused by a certain inherited disease (familial Mediterranean fever). It is thought to work by decreasing your body's production of a certain protein (amyloid A) that builds up in people with familial Mediterranean fever. Colchicine is not a pain medication and should not be used to relieve other causes of pain. | |||
Alternatives
Reviews
| Add Allopurinol review I HAVE MAJOR HAIR LOSS. IT HAS BEEN 6 WEEKS SINCE I STOPPED TAKING IT AND I AM STILL LOSING IT. Iv ben on it for 6 yrs Not one gout bout Have used zyloprim and allopurinol since the mid 70's w no recurrance of gout symptons. Great medication I have taken it for a week and stopped because I saw no results. But, the pain in the big toe is waking me from sleep throbbing so, I started taking it again 3 days ago. I am on 100mg. I didn't realize it takes weeks before you get any results. It works well for me. I have had 0 gout attacks since going on the medication 6 months ago. I am concerned about the side effects. | Add Colchicine review I have been an athlete for 55 years and I experience gout as a running back in college. While I did not know what I was experiencing, I suffered through many games where I thought my pain was an injury. Through the years I have discovered that intense physical activity agravates the gout (at least I experience many attacks after long and/or hard workouts). The pain has been in my feet (instep, arch, toes), hand (fingers, knuckles), wrist (feels like a sprain) and elbow. None of these are at the same time, but the pain can shift from one area to the next. Others do not understand the degree of the pain but they can certainly observe that I am in a great deal of pain because of my inability to move during a flare-up. I have used indocin for years during "attacks" but I get headaches with that drug. I experience five or six strong flare-up each year. The doctor started me on colchicine and the pain decreased immediately. I have had no side effects. I have read many reviews on this site and it seems as though the frequency of use has been a factor in many of the excerpts. I take only two a day, one early and one mid-day. I have experienced no adverse problems. Believe me when I say that I do not take medication. I do not take any other drugs and I only use colchicine during the attacks and for few days afterwards. Again, as I read these reviews it seems as though some medical professionals are precribing large doses. Maybe, like anything else moderation is the secret. Also, after reading some of these reviews, I realize how much I appreciate my doctor. I have been suffering from gout for past 10 years. One instance the pain was so bad I had to call the on call physician. I was diagnosed with gout. I was prescribed colchicine for the pain. The pain stopped and the swelling decreased. I now take the medication daily and have no problems. I have no complains since I have been on this medication. I'll deal with the side effects of the medication than the severe pain from the gout which is unbearable. | |||
