A 52-year-old man with gouty arthritis and erosive lesion in the hip

The case study of peripheral and axial gouty arthritis is described in a 52-year-old man without concomitant clinical evidence of tophaceus gout on physical evaluation on admission. Gout is a metabolic disorder related to excess of uric acid in the extracellular compartment, and deposition of monosodium urate crystals in the joints and other sites. Arthritis and tophi are major manifestations, which more often involve the peripheral joints asymmetrically. Chronic tophaceous gout commonly develops after a decade of recurrent polyarticular gout. With lower frequency, the axial skeleton (spine and sacroiliac region) may be affected, condition sometimes associated with additional concerns, diagnostic challenges and pitfalls. Higher suspicion index and utilization of novel radiographic tools can settle these matters. Radiographic imaging exams include plain radiography, computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and bone scintigraphy to show bone erosion and joint lesions characterizing the spectrum of gouty osteoarthropathy.