Tophi, plural for Tophus, are deposits of uric acid crystals at and around the joints of someone afflicted with Chronic Gout. They can grow into grotesque looking lumps with an appearance of a chalky substance or a cottage cheese texture. They can take on a whitish or yellowish color and can either grow hardened or be somewhat soft and pliable.
When chronic gout has been left unattended and untreated for an unspecified length of time, the ongoing presence of elevated uric acid levels can then lead the condition of Tophaceous Gout. At this point the disease of gout can move to being considered life threatening.
Beyond the unattractive ugliness of the lumps, they can serve to create permanent joint damage. If they become ulcerated, they can become septic.
This is a severely dangerous condition technically termed Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome or SIRS and the body develops this inflammatory response by the immune system to microbes in the blood, urine, lungs, skin, or other tissues. The common term is blood poisoning and is often very hard to bring back under control.
Beyond the threat of SIRS, the presence of Tophi signals extreme Acidosis of the entire body. With the buildup of these crystals in and near the joints, a very real and high likelihood of developing kidney stones is at hand. If kidney stones develop, the condition can then move into a number of different Renal Function Complications.
As an acidic state of health mounts, it also brings with it the onset of many other common lifestyle related diseases; Heart Disease, Diabetes, Cancer, etc.
The typical western medicine approach to managing gout is to prescribe Allopurnol and Colchine, with other new pharmaceuticals on the horizon. These prescription drugs are effective in the manner that they are a good solution for those seeking above all else, "Convenience".
They work with tolerable effectiveness to limit the production of uric acid and mitigate inflammation, however, like all western medicines they only serve to mask the symptoms and fail to address the root cause of gout being, "how did the body become so acidic?"
In our western world of "convenience first", these gout pharmaceuticals work well if the condition of gout is viewed from the dietary point of view that "high uric acid is caused by high purine foods".
Acidosis is not only created by the acidic foods and drinks we consume, but also by the toxic chemicals in our air, what we touch, from chronic unintentional dehydration, and our own metabolism due to Stress.
Learning to manage the pH of our body chemistry with the use of alkaline foods and water, conscious breathing techniques, proper movement and exercise, and emotional control, we can get to the root cause of what creates the condition of gout and the unbearable intense pain that goes along with it, as well as the complications and danger of tophi.
The onset of gout and tophi is just a painful omen that is best taken seriously.
Two common questions when it comes to gout are: what is tophi? And what are purines? Low purine foods can help head off gout and tophi but there is much more you can do!
Bert Middleton, The Gout Killer!