Family study of lipid and purine levels in gout patients.

A family study was performed to determine whether the hypertriglyceridaemia associated with gout is present in families of gout patients or due to the life style of the patient himself. The study revealed the expected hypertriglyceridaemia in gout patients; this was reflected by elevated serum levels of prebetalipoproteins and with reduction in the proportion of beta-lipoprotein. None of these abnormalities were seen in the first-degree relatives. Furthermore, the proportion of high-density lipoproteins was not significantly raised in gout patients.