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Colchicine, a gout treatment that downregulates inflammation in part by blocking formation of microtubule spindles, has been found to provide protection from recurrent cardiac events in patients with various heart diseases. But little is known about its effect in patients with gout. These researchers linked data from an electronic medical records database with 2006–2011 Medicare claims data to identify patients with a diagnosis of gout.
The investigators compared 501 patients who were new colchicine users with 501 age- and sex-matched nonusers (mean age, 73; men, 64%). Hypertension rates and use of statins, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, and steroids were higher in the colchicine group.
At a median follow-up of 1.3 years, the primary c…