Hyperuricaemia and gout in Western Samoans

Rural-urban comparisons of the prevalence of hyperuricaemia and gout were made in the Polynesian population of Western Samoa. Of the 1474 subjects studied, 39.9% of the males and 26.4% of the females had hyperuricaemia. The prevalence in the rural males (43.3%) and females (29.5%) was a little higher than for urban males (36.4%) and females (23.3%) but the differences were not statistically significant. The prevalence of clinical gout was identical for the two male groups (2.3%) but differed for the females. Of the urban females 1.3% had gout, whereas no cases were seen in the rural females. There was a correlation between serum uric acid and body mass index and a strong consistent correlation with serum creatinine.