The effects of lowering uric acid levels using allopurinol on components of Metabolic Syndrome.

Purpose: To determine the relationship between uric acid and lipid levels for the purpose of understanding more about the public health issue of Metabolic Syndrome. Methods: A retrospective analysis was conducted using 66 patients from a family health clinic who were over the age of 18 and who had been given at least three prescriptions of allopurinol. Repeated measures linear growth models with Restricted Maximum Likelihood tests were conducted to determine the relationship of uric acid and the lipid levels. Results: A significant relationship between uric acid and lipid levels was not determined. There was a slight indication of a relationship between uric acid and total cholesterol or HDL-cholesterol. Uric acid levels did not decrease over time for all participants as expected. Conclusions: More research is needed to explore the relationship between uric acid and lipid levels. Furthermore, compliance among participants could be enhanced by determining best health education methods.