Quick answer: Gout and cellulitis can both leave a foot red, hot and painful, but they are different problems with different treatment. Gout is a sudden crystal attack centred on a joint, most often the big toe. Cellulitis is a bacterial skin infection that spreads outward through the skin and often brings a fever. Spreading redness or fever should be treated as cellulitis until proven otherwise and needs same-day care. Book online, or call (810) 206-1402.
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Gout vs Cellulitis
Quick Answer: Gout: sudden severe pain in joint, often big toe, attack-like. Cellulitis: spreading skin infection with redness, warmth, fever. Both red and painful. Cellulitis = ER (bacterial). Gout = urgent but not ER.
Different Beasts
Gout = uric acid crystals. Cellulitis = bacterial infection. Treatment vastly different.
FAQ
How tell apart?
Cellulitis spreads — gout localized to joint.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Which one is the emergency?
Cellulitis. Redness that spreads across the skin, warmth and fever point to a bacterial infection, which is treated with antibiotics and should be seen the same day. A gout attack is severe and urgent, but it is not usually an emergency in the same way.
How do I tell them apart at home?
Gout pain is centred on a joint and builds over hours, classically in the big toe. Cellulitis redness does not stay over one joint; it spreads through the skin, and fever is common. That spreading pattern is the most useful difference.
What if I cannot tell?
Get it looked at rather than waiting it out. The two are managed completely differently, so the diagnosis has to come first.