Goutte

Okay kiddo, so you know how sometimes your finger gets really red and hurts a lot when you accidentally shut it in the door or hit it with a ball? Well, sometimes something similar can happen to grown-ups, but in their toe or another joint. This is called goutte, or gout for short.

Gout happens when there is too much of something called uric acid in a person's blood. Uric acid is a chemical that comes from eating certain foods, like seafood or fancy meats, and drinking sugary drinks or alcohol. When there is too much uric acid in the blood, it can start to form tiny crystals in the joints, like little grains of sand.

And just like when you get sand in your shoe and it hurts to walk, the uric acid crystals in the joints can cause a lot of pain, swelling, and redness. Sometimes a grown-up with goutte can't even stand to have a bedsheet touch their toe because it hurts so much!

Luckily, goutte can usually be treated with medicine prescribed by a doctor. They might give the patient something to reduce the swelling and pain, and also something to lower the level of uric acid in their blood. They might also give the patient some advice on what kinds of foods and drinks to avoid in the future, so that they don't get goutte again.

So that's goutte, kiddo: when too much uric acid in the blood turns into tiny painful crystals in a grown-up's toe or other joint. It hurts a lot but it can be treated by a doctor.