Association between Regular Exercise and Urinary Uric Acid Excretion in Chinese Adults: A Cross-sectional Study

Regular exercise decreases the risk of hyperuricemia, which is related to reduced urinary uric acid excretion (UUA/UAE). However, few studies have assessed the association between regular exercise and UAE. We conducted this study to investigate their associations in the general population. This was a cross-sectional study that involved a total of 5513 Chinese community-dwellers, who reported data on physical exercise. Fasting morning spot urine was used to measure UUA and creatinine. UAE was primarily assessed by UUA to creatinine ratio (UCr) and secondly by excretion of uric acid per volume of glomerular filtration (EurGF) and fractional excretion of uric acid (FEua). Linear regression analysis was used to assess their associations. Of the included participants, their mean age was 55.1 ± 13.0 years, and 1984 (36.0%) undertook regular exercise. Compared with participants with regular exercise, those with irregular exercise or no exercise had higher UUA/UCr (0.36 ± 0.15 vs. 0.39 ± 0.15, P < 0.001), EurGF (0.23 ± 0.10 vs. 0.24 ± 0.11 mg/dL, P < 0.001), and FEua (0.07 ± 0.04 vs. 0.08 ± 0.04, P = 0.006). These associations remained significant after controlling for multivariable including serum uric acid (SUA) or upon the exclusion of participants with renal dysfunction or urinary tract infection. In conclusion, regular exercise might be associated with decreased UAE, independent of SUA, in Chinese community-dwellers.