The effect of alcoholic beverage type on hyperuricemia in Japanese male office workers.

Background: The association between alcohol consumption and risk of hyperuricemia has been pointed out. However, the potential difference in the risk of hyperuricemia according to types of alcoholic beverage has not been assessed.

Methods: A cross-sectional survey was performed using data from 715 men who had regular medical examinations in their workplace in 2001. Subjects were interviewed using a questionnaire about their lifestyle including types of alcoholic beverages and quantity of alcohol consumed per day. Logistic regression analysis was performed to assess the relationship between the types of alcoholic beverage and high serum uric acid level.

Results: Compared with subjects who did not drink alcohol, the odds ratio (OR) of hyperuricemia (serum uric acid = 7.0+ mg/dL) was 2.89 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.46-5.71) for subjects who consumed 50+ g/day of ethanol, and 2.64 (95% CI: 1.33-5.24) for subjects who consumed 25-49g/day. Compared with subjects who drank Japanese sake, subjects who drank beer (OR=1.24, 95% CI: 0.55-2.80) or shochu (OR=1.06, 95% CI: 0.44-2.51) did not have a statistically significant difference in risk for hyperuricemia.

Conclusion: These findings from a cross-sectional study of Japanese male office workers suggested that alcohol consumption is associated with an increased risk of hyperuricemia and that this increased risk does not vary according to the types of alcoholic beverage.