I have been searching for information to see if the weight loss drug Phentermine can cause gout. My husband has a history of it and he is taking phentermine and it seems he is having more and more gout attacks. Best answer to the person that can provide actual facts and possibly a website to back this up.
Sorry about the long winded answer, but I think if you know the mechanism of action of each, then you will have a clearer idea:
Phentermine:
Its an anorectic agent……i.e, it stimulates neuron bundles to release a particular group of neurotransmitters known as catecholamines; these include dopamine, adrenaline, and noradrenaline. These neurotransmitters signal a fight-or-flight response in the body which, in turn, puts a halt to the hunger signal. As a result, it causes a loss in appetite because the brain does not receive the hunger message
Drugs for gout (I don't know the exact medication your husband is taking) but this is generally how gout medication works: they decrease the levels of uric acid in the body by enhancing their excretion by the kidney, hence decrease the amount of precipitation of uric acid in joints.
Adrenaline (phentermine works by releasing adrenaline) acts on the beta and alpha receptors (receptors on the urinary bladder) and the trigone sphincter (there are sphincters, much like doors so to speak, in the bladder that opens up and closes when needed) is constricted. This action tends to hinder urination (is your husband urinating less than usual? specially around the time when he is getting gout attacks?)
Therefore, by hindering urination, and thereby reducing excretion of uric acid, there might be more and more uric acid precipitating in his body, thereby leading to attacks of gout.
Phentermine is not CAUSING the gout (since he already had gout) but it might be exacerbating it.
You should consult a doctor and ask the doctor whether he should stop taking phentermine.
Sorry about the long winded answer, but I think if you know the mechanism of action of each, then you will have a clearer idea:
Phentermine:
Its an anorectic agent……i.e, it stimulates neuron bundles to release a particular group of neurotransmitters known as catecholamines; these include dopamine, adrenaline, and noradrenaline. These neurotransmitters signal a fight-or-flight response in the body which, in turn, puts a halt to the hunger signal. As a result, it causes a loss in appetite because the brain does not receive the hunger message
Drugs for gout (I don't know the exact medication your husband is taking) but this is generally how gout medication works: they decrease the levels of uric acid in the body by enhancing their excretion by the kidney, hence decrease the amount of precipitation of uric acid in joints.
Adrenaline (phentermine works by releasing adrenaline) acts on the beta and alpha receptors (receptors on the urinary bladder) and the trigone sphincter (there are sphincters, much like doors so to speak, in the bladder that opens up and closes when needed) is constricted. This action tends to hinder urination (is your husband urinating less than usual? specially around the time when he is getting gout attacks?)
Therefore, by hindering urination, and thereby reducing excretion of uric acid, there might be more and more uric acid precipitating in his body, thereby leading to attacks of gout.
Phentermine is not CAUSING the gout (since he already had gout) but it might be exacerbating it.
You should consult a doctor and ask the doctor whether he should stop taking phentermine.
References :
I am a final year medical student………I cannot cite a website. I got it from my pharmacology book (I think if you go to a medical bookstore, you should be able to look it up in any pharmacology book) or medicine books (Harrisons or Davidsons)