92% of Gout Patients Last Year Were Men... Most Were in Their 40s

Last year, 92% of gout patients were male.

The National Health Insurance Service announced on the 24th the status of health insurance treatment for 'gout (M10)' patients from 2018 to 2022 using health insurance treatment data. The number of patients increased by 17.1%, from 433,984 in 2018 to 508,397 last year.

As of last year, the number of male patients was 471,569, an increase of 17.9% compared to 2018. Female patients increased by 8.7% to 36,828.

In particular, patients in their 40s accounted for 22.9% of the total. Looking at the composition ratio of gout patients by age group, those in their 40s made up the largest portion at 22.9% (116,357) of the total patients. This was followed by patients in their 50s at 20.7% (105,448) and those in their 60s at 17.7% (89,894). Among males, the highest proportion was in their 40s at 23.7%, followed by those in their 50s at 20.9% and 30s at 18.0%. For females, the order was 60s at 22.1%, 50s at 18.5%, and 80 years and older at 17.3%.

The health insurance treatment cost for 'gout' patients increased by 30.1%, from 92.4 billion KRW in 2018 to 120.2 billion KRW last year. The average annual growth rate was 6.8%. Examining the composition of health insurance treatment costs for gout patients by age group, those in their 40s accounted for the largest share at 23.6% (28.4 billion KRW), followed by those in their 50s at 20.5% (24.7 billion KRW) and 60s at 17.3% (20.8 billion KRW). By gender, males in their 40s accounted for 24.5% (27.7 billion KRW), while females aged 80 and above accounted for the largest share at 26.2% (1.8 billion KRW).

Looking at the treatment cost per patient over five years, it increased by 11.1% from 213,000 KRW in 2018 to 236,000 KRW last year. For males, it rose by 10.7% from 217,000 KRW to 240,000 KRW. For females, it increased by 14.8% from 166,000 KRW to 191,000 KRW. By age, patients aged 80 and above had the highest treatment cost at 274,000 KRW.

Professor Park Jin-su of the Rheumatology Department at National Health Insurance Ilsan Hospital said, "Gout occurs due to hyperuricemia, which happens when uric acid increases because of increased intake and decreased excretion. Hyperuricemia is more common in males, and gout incidence is higher among them. This may be related to dietary habits such as consuming foods high in uric acid and meat. However, female hormones help excrete uric acid and lower blood uric acid levels, which results in fewer gout cases among females."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.