Some of the few reasons why medicines for the same illness may vary include composition, mechanism, and dosage. Unluckily, the range of ways doesn’t really guarantee the effectiveness. The quantity isn’t always equal to that of the quality.
The allopurinol and uloric are two of the most common medicines that are used in treating gout. Or it is what’s believed by most people, at least. Often times, the uloric is thought to be much more effective than that of the allopurinol. Is it really true?
This article hopes to answer the question, “What is the difference between allopurinol and uloric?” read on and get to know the answer!
Gout: The Science Behind It
As the uloric and allopurinol are two medications for gout, we must know the mechanism of action of gout first. Then and there, I’ll be explaining the difference between uloric and allopurinol.
Gout, as we know, is a form of rheumatism, which typically bouts the ball-and-socket joints. This is actually not a chance. There’s a reason behind its selection of goal.
Gout starts when the uric acid starts to crystallize. Furthermore, there are only chosen hotspots where the uric acid may crystalize. The uric acid isn’t supposed to reach the ball-and-socket joints. Nevertheless, we sometime force the body to go beyond its limit and normal functions.
In the actual fact, the body applies a sequence of mechanisms, also known as the homeostasis in order to regulate the balance that’s required by the body. One of that kind of balance is the acid-alkaline balance of the body. When either the alkalinity or the acidity exceeds the other, the body will obstruct through the application of the reliable mechanisms. For example, excess acids, including the uric acid will get stored in the interstitial fluids, which are the fluids that surround the cells. Unluckily, the interstitial fluids eventually will overflow with the acid. This will then force the acids to sink much deeper and then move to various places where they aren’t meant to be stored, just like the synovial fluids.
In order to answer the question, “What is the difference between uloric and allopurinol?”, remember this: the uric acid is the byproduct when the purine is broken down.
This is where the likeness comes in: both the uloric and allopurinol inhibits the above-mentioned break down. They both fall under the category of “xanthine oxidase inhibitor”. Though the binding of the enzyme needed to breakdown the purine into uric acid, they efficiently halt the process.
The Difference Between Uloric And Allopurinol
Here goes the difference between the two: uloric is relatively more effective than allopurinol.
To understand why, imagine this scenario:
You have a standard set of cards. If I draw a king, I lose and I will give you $1000. Is the chance very small right? Now imagine the second scenario:
You have another set of card. If I draw a king, I lose and I will give you $1000, and here is a twist: all the cards are king! There is a hundred percent chance of winning. It is a matter of probability.
The same goes for uloric and allopurinol. Allopurinol has a lesser chance of binding with xanthine oxidase compared to uloric. This is because uloric is selective and only binds with xanthine oxidase while allopurinol can end up binding with other enzymes or proteins (they are like the two different deck of cards I mentioned)
This also explains why uloric comes in smaller dosage. Assuming that allopurinol is 80% accurate in its targeting, only 80% of its dosage will affect you (again, allopurinol is inaccurate because it is not selective) so the dosage has to be higher than the accurate uloric.
Do the explanations above satisfy your “what is the difference between uloric and allopurinol” question? That is not all. You might be speculating that uloric is a better choice. Relatively, it is a better choice though this choice is like choosing between cutting your head off with a katana or a chainsaw. Be aware that both of them have severe side effects. Some can even be fatal. Why settle for the risky if there is an alternative?
