Two different types of urine tests are used in managing gout — the uric acid test and the pH test.

  • Uric acid urine testing is used to determine how much uric acid is being excreted by the kidneys via urine.
  • pH urine testing is used to determine whether overall body chemistry is in an acidic or alkaline state, which helps with gout prevention.

This page is about uric acid urine tests. To learn more about pH urine testing, click here.

Kidneys, Urine, and Gout

The kidneys are responsible for keeping uric acid blood levels within the normal range. However, if they do not excrete enough uric acid through urine, the end result is elevated uric acid levels in the blood — leading to gout attacks.

In fact, 90% of elevated uric acid blood levels are due to impaired kidney function, and only 10% is related to dietary purine consumption.

Test Procedure and Results

The uric acid urine test must be ordered by your doctor and analyzed by a laboratory.

For the test, you will collect your urine for an entire 24-hour period, and then a medical technician will measure the uric acid in the sample and report the results.

If your levels are above normal (800 mg/day for men; 750 mg/day for women), the formal name for the diagnosis is hyperuricosuria.

Is Uric Acid Urine Testing Enough?

Urine tests do not tell the whole uric acid story. You could have:

  • Low levels of uric acid in your urine, but high levels in your blood; or
  • High levels of uric acid in your urine, but low levels in your blood.

As such, urine test results need to be evaluated by your doctor in concert with blood tests, in order to gain a full understanding of your current condition.

The most important information arising from a urine test is whether or not your kidneys are excreting enough uric acid to keep your blood uric acid levels within the normal range.

☆ Bottom Line — It doesn’t really matter how much uric acid is in your urine — what matters is how much is left in your blood! When the doctor reviews the results of your urine test alongside your blood test, you will have an idea of whether or not your gout-killing lifestyle changes are working.