Gout in the ED and Improving Research Participation

April 23, 2026 updated by: Kenneth Saag, MD, MSc, University of Alabama at Birmingham

Improving Care for Gout in the Southeast Enhancing Gout Minority Patients Care and Participation in Gout Clinical Research

The prevalence of gout has been steadily increasing over several decades and is correlated with the rising burden of obesity, chronic cardiac and renal disease; all conditions overrepresented in the Southeastern U.S. - particularly in African Americans. Through a novel emergency department led intervention we aim to improve the care patients with gout receive, both during acute exacerbations and long-term. A secondary goal of the project is to concurrently enhance participation of minorities in biomedical research in the Deep South.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Gout is a chronic disease that affects over 9 million Americans. It is characterized by intermittent flares associated with severe pain. The prevalence of gout has been steadily increasing over several decades and it correlates with the rising burden of obesity, chronic cardiac and renal disease, all conditions overrepresented in the Southeastern U.S. - particularly in African Americans. In addition, many gout patients are not adherent with their follow-up visits due to a lack of awareness of the consequences of untreated gout and/or poor access to health care. As a result, US emergency departments (EDs) are delivering an increasing amount of gout care for underserved populations.

To address this significant public health problems teams at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), University of Iowa, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), and MetroHealth Medical Center are collaborating on a novel emergency department-led intervention aimed at improving the gout care patients receive, during periods of acute flare and long-term. Investigators hypothesize that the use of educational material including cultural appropriate stories about what it is like to live with gout and the use of navigators who will help patients better coordinate their care, will be associated with improved rates of patients that have a follow-up visit addressing gout after the ED visit. A secondary goal is to enhance participation of underrepresented minorities in biomedical research in the Deep South as part of an NIH funded gout center at UAB.

Investigators will recruit and enroll adults (at least 18 years of age) that have confirmed gout. Participants will include men and women of all races/ethnicities. Recruitment will occur in the EDs at UAB, University of Iowa, MGH, and MetroHealth. Qualifying patients will be assigned by chance to get either 1) our enhanced educational materials coupled (at UAB) with a lay person who can help them coordinate their care or 2) to receive the current usual standard of care for their gout. After a gout diagnosis is confirmed by a research assistant, informed consent will be obtained. Following enrollment, participants will complete questionnaires at 3 and 6 months. Beyond follow-up visits, Investigators will also measure differences in the groups between the use of medication for gout treatment, other healthcare visits, changes in weight, satisfaction, and overall health during study follow-up. Leveraging the resources of UAB, including the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) funded Center of Research Translation (CORT) in gout and hyperuricemia and ongoing collaborations between these medical institutions, Investigators have assembled a multidisciplinary scientific team, uniquely prepared to execute the proposed study to help medically underserved gout patients and enhance research diversity in the Southeast.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
200

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Alabama
      • Birmingham, Alabama, United States, 35294
        • University of Alabama at Birmingham
    • Iowa
      • Iowa City, Iowa, United States, 52242
        • University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics
    • Massachusetts
      • Boston, Massachusetts, United States, 02114
        • Massachusetts General Hospital
    • Ohio
      • Cleveland, Ohio, United States, 44109
        • MetroHealth Medical Center

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Gout diagnosis meeting 2015 American College of Rheumatology and European League Against Rheumatism classification criteria,99,140
  • Adult > 18 years of age
  • Able to communicate and understand English language (a future objective, with additional resources, will include Spanish translation of all study materials).

Key exclusion criteria:

  • Joint complaint related to significant trauma or recent surgery (<1 month)
  • Life expectancy of < 6 months
  • Current critical illness leading to admission to high acuity medical care unit (ICU, stepdown unit) or requiring surgical intervention (general anesthesia); confirmed septic arthritis or joint infectious arthritis

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Health Services Research
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
No Intervention: Control
Usual Care
Experimental: Intervention
Storytelling A health literacy-appropriate and culturally-adapted intervention delivered on a tablet computer containing "storytelling" to improve patient gout knowledge and approaches to prevent flares, destigmatize gout, and enhance readiness to adopt available long-term treatments for gout including medications, diet, and exercise, or ii) usual gout care (control state).
Behavioral: Storytelling
A health literacy-appropriate and culturally-adapted intervention delivered on a tablet computer containing "storytelling" to improve patient gout knowledge and approaches to prevent flares, destigmatize gout, and enhance readiness to adopt available long-term treatments for gout including medications, diet, and exercise, or ii) usual gout care (control state).

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Outpatient Primary Care or Specialist Visits for Gout Treatment
Time Frame: 3 months
Proportion of participants who attend a primary care or specialist visits for gout treatment
3 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
University of Alabama at Birmingham

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Massachusetts General Hospital
National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS)
University of Iowa
MetroHealth Medical Center

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
June 1, 2021

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
September 20, 2024

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
July 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
August 29, 2019

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 29, 2019

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
September 3, 2019

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
May 7, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
April 23, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
November 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 300003869
  • P50AR060772 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

IPD Plan Description

We are prepared to share data in the following ways: (a) perform a final data edit on the complete data set; (b) create a final data file; (c) perform statistical analyses that support the study findings; (c) issue final reports to the appropriate authorities and collaborators; and (e) provide copies of the finalized data sets. The finalized datasets will be made public with the requisite documentation. All datasets made public will be distributed first to all collaborating co-investigators for verification and testing. The mode of dissemination of these public datasets will be via archive files accessible in the public domain. Public datasets will be de-identified so that they are free of all identifiers that would permit linkages to individual research participants and of variables that could lead to deductive disclosure of the identity of individual participants. Bio-specimens collected and stored as part of this study will be made available through requests to the INSIGHT CORT.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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