Xanthine oxidase inhibitors in asymptomatic hyperuricemia

Abstract

Asymptomatic hyperuricemia (AHU) is a condition, in which the serum concentration of uric acid (UA) is increased (>420 μmol/l in men or >360 μmol/l in women) and there are no signs of the formation of urate crystals. The worldwide prevalence rate of AHU has been on the increase in recent decades: it has been detected in approximately every five inhabitants of the Earth. In 10% of adults, hyperuricemia (HU) occurs at least once in a lifetime. In the process of evolution, HU has been useful; it has contributed to the intellectual development of man, owing to the activation of neurostimulating adenosine receptors, and to his survival under cold and hunger conditions. However, the negative role of UA in the genesis of different metabolic disorders, cardiovascular diseases (CVD), and kidney diseases has been discussed in recent decades. The association of elevated UA levels with almost all CVD risk factors makes it difficult to answer the question of whether UA plays a causative role in the development of heart disease, kidney disease, or carbohydrate metabolism disorders, or it is only a marker for their increased risk.Whether HU that is uncomplicated by joint damage, urolithiasis, or urate nephropathy should be treated is another question that is currently being actively discussed. Although the routine prophylactic urate-lowering therapy is not indicated in the vast majority of cases of AHU, there is growing evidence that this correction is necessary in some groups of patients. The use of xanthine oxidase (XO) inhibitors in a number of trials was accompanied by a reduction in the risk of CVD and by an improvement in renal function. Epidemiological studies have also established that there is a significant positive correlation of the serum concentration of UA with obesity, dyslipidemia, insulin resistance, and cerebrovascular and peripheral vascular diseases. Further investigations are needed to study the impact of lowering UA levels and that of therapy with XO inhibitors on the progression of different diseases.

Keywords

• ингибиторы ксантиноксидазы
• асимптоматическая гиперурикемия
• обменные нарушения