Gout incidence and management during the COVID-19 pandemic in England, UK: a nationwide observational study using OpenSAFELY
Authors' conclusion
We observed a reduction in gout diagnoses but no effect on treatment metrics.
Study context
- Population
- Adults aged 18–110 years registered with TPP general practices in England, UK, March 1, 2015, to Feb 28, 2023246,695 incident gout
- Participants
- 17,865,145 adults
- Exposure
- Pandemic period vs pre-pandemic period
- Outcome
- Incident gout diagnoses per 1000 adults
- Follow-up
- Year beginning March, 2020 vs preceding year
Methodological detailsnationwide, primary care and hospital electronic health records, OpenSAFELY platform, interrupted time-series analyses
- Nationwide
- Primary care and hospital electronic health records
- OpenSAFELY platform
- Interrupted time-series analyses
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
- Incident gout diagnoses decreased
- 30.9%
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Gout hospitalisations per 100 000 adults · year commencing March, 2020 vs preceding year
- Gout hospitalisations per 100 000 adults — Gout hospitalisations decreased
- 30.1%
Gout prevalence
- Prevalence 2015-16
- 3.07%
- Prevalence 2022-23
- 3.21%
ULT prescribed within 6 months of incident gout
- Prescribed ULT (of 228 095 with follow-up)
- 66 560 (29.2%)
- ULT prescribing improved modestly during the pandemic vs pre-pandemic (interrupted time-series)
Serum urate ≤360 μmol/L within 6 months of ULT initiation
- Attained target (of 65 305 initiating ULT with follow-up)
- 16 790 (25.7%)
- Urate target attainment similar during the pandemic vs pre-pandemic (interrupted time-series)
Original publication
Gout incidence and management during the COVID-19 pandemic in England, UK: a nationwide observational study using OpenSAFELY. Lancet Rheumatol. Published 31 August 2023. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →