Managing the ‘disease of kings’

IT IS called the ‘disease of kings’ because it afflicts wealthy individuals mostly, but the recent rise in gout cases shows that the disease does not discriminate.

Throughout history, gout has notably afflicted monarchs such as King Henry VIII of England, English physicist and mathematician Sir Isaac Newtwon, world famous painter and architect Leonardo da Vinci, to name but a few.

According to the Stuff website, the aristocrats could afford to indulge in expensive food and drinks such as wine and meat which made them susceptible to the disease, hence the nickname ‘disease of kings’. In some cases, the disease is hereditary.

“They say African men are not supposed to cry, but when this disease strikes, I try hard not to cry,” Windhoek resident Basiman Namubeb admits.

Like many other Namibians, Namubeb’s love for meat and alcoholic beverages has turned him into a gout victim.

Namubeb is a patient who knows the gnawing pain of gout too well after living with the disease for more than 15 years.

He walks with visible discomfort, limping with every step, a reminder of the daily struggle he has with the incurable disease. His left thumb is disfigured and his index finger is stiff.

The frustrated 44-year-old says he has sought ways to get relief from the excruciating pain of gout and spent more than N$100 000 in doctors’ consultation fees and painkillers over the years.

After being sent from pillar to post in search of a cure, he has concluded that medical science has failed him and other victims facing the same predicament.

“A simple disease like gout should not take scientists this long to figure out, we need a permanent cure” he says.

He says the many painkillers his doctor keeps subscribing only help suppress the pain but do little to cure the disease. Namubeb was advised by a dietician to convert to vegetarian in order to keep the disease under control. But Namubeb says he is not willing to exchange his love for okapana and beer for a healthier lifestyle, adding that he still visits the okapana stalls for a treat despite his condition.

“I’m an African man. I cannot function without meat and switch to a European diet. I will die of hunger,” he says. Namubeb admits that the disease strikes right after he has had a spicy snack, adding that he has to carry pain killers with him wherever he goes as he never knows when the disease might strike.

“When it strikes, it will not let go until I take a strong painkiller to numb the pain,” he states.

Oscar Hiskia, another gout sufferer, says that with the right diet and exercise, the disease can be controlled.

“I have been alcohol free for almost three months now and I am already seeing an improvement,” says Hiskia, adding that he has also increased his water intake.

The civil servant says he was diagnosed with gout in his early thirties but refused to give up on spicy snacks despite doctors advice for him to do so.

“It was only when the disease started interfering in my professional life that I decided to change my lifestyle. I used to do work presentations while in excruciating pain and was often booked off sick and my work suffered as a result,” he says.

Hiskia believes his gout runs in the family as it has already afflicted three other close family members. “I advise young people to watch what they eat because when they get to my age, it may be too late.”

But in the modern world and Namibia in particular where various delicacies line supermarket shelves and okapana stalls are common, both middle and low income earners have not been spared.

Windhoek-based doctor Tatenda Mawire says gout, which is classified as a type of arthritis, is caused by excessive consumption of red meat, alcoholic drinks and certain juices which contribute to a high level of uric acid in the blood from a deposition of crystals. Mawire says he sees at least two patients with gout every week.

“It is a very common disease, especially here in Namibia,” he says, adding that gout is a lifestyle disease. “Often, when people move to urban areas, they are able to afford various foods which can lead to gout.”

He says people, especially middle-aged men, are likely to get the disease after years of excessive alcohol and red meat consumption.

“The only remedy is a change of lifestyle and to reduce acid intake,” he said.

Sufferers say the symptom of gout is needle-prick pangs that come with swelling and reddening of the big toe. In the worse case scenario, Mawire says, it can lead to the deformity of the affected joints.