One person in four in the industrialized countries suffers from hyperuricemia and is therefore at risk of developing gouty arthritis, nephrolithiasis, or any of the other consequences of urate deposition. At present, far too little is known about urate deposition and the mechanisms by which it occurs, as well as about its clinical consequences, which include formation of toph; over the helix of the ear or in bones close to joints that have never exhibited an attack, development of bursitis, chronic tendovaginitis leading to carpal tunnel syndrome, and gouty paraplegia. Information on these matters is needed to estimate the risks of hyperuricemia and to determine when therapeutic intervention is indicated. The contributions and discussions in this book, resulting from an international symposium held in December 1990 in the Medizinische Poliklinik in Munich, provide an up-to-date source of current knowledge about hyperuricemia in man and its clinical consequences.

1 The Study of Inborn Errors of Metabolism - 40 Years of Experience at the Poliklinik of the University of Munich

2 The Enigma of Urate Deposition
Precipitation and Deposition of Monosodium Urate Monohydrate Crystals in Tissues
3 Urate Depositions in Tissues
4 Renal Consequences of Hyperuricemia
Urate and Uric Acid Crystal Reactions Within the Kidney - Clinical and Experimental Studies
5 Urate Deposition and Stone Formation in the Kidney in Renal Hypouricemia
Acute Renal Insufficiency: Which Mechanisms Are Involved?
6 Epidemiology of Hyperuricaemia
7 Pathogenesis of Monosodium Urate Crystal-Induced Inflammation
Crystal-Associated Inflammation: Some Mechanisms of Cellular Activation
8 The Course of Chronic Gout with Special Reference to Extra-articular Manifestations and Joints Not Affected by Acute Attacks
9 The Course of Chondrocalcinosis
10 Round Table Discussion.