Can Gout Cause a Fever? What’s Normal and When to Get Help
Fever, Feeling Unwell, and When a Painful Joint Needs Urgent Assessment
A gout attack can sometimes cause fever or make you feel generally unwell — but the same symptoms can also signal a joint infection. Here is what the evidence supports, and when to get medical help.
The Quick Answer
Yes — a gout flare can sometimes cause fever or make you feel unwell, especially with more than one joint affected, though it is not the most common gout symptom. Fever with a hot, swollen joint can also mean joint infection (septic arthritis), a genuine emergency, so it should never be assumed to be “just” gout — whether or not you have had gout before. Seek same-day medical assessment rather than waiting to see if it settles.
Fever Is Possible
Not the most common symptom, but recognised, especially with multiple joints.
Infection Must Be Ruled Out
The same symptoms can mean septic arthritis, a joint infection needing emergency care.
No Home Test
No reliable way to tell gout and joint infection apart without assessment.
Previous Gout Is Not Proof
Having had gout before does not rule out something else now.
Can a Gout Attack Cause a Fever?
Yes — fever can occur during a gout attack, though it is not the most common symptom and does not happen with every flare. Gout causes intense local inflammation, and in some people that response also produces systemic effects, including a raised temperature. Research into gout’s inflammatory biology describes fever as “not uncommon” during an attack, appearing most often when more than one joint is affected at once, rather than with a single, isolated flare.
This is not a reason to feel reassured by a fever. The chemical signals behind it are also produced by the body in response to infection, so a fever alongside a hot, swollen joint can just as easily point to joint infection as to gout — you cannot tell the two apart simply by noticing a temperature.
Local Joint Inflammation
Heat, redness, swelling and severe pain confined to the joint — the hallmark of a gout flare.
Possible Systemic Symptoms
Fever, fatigue or feeling unwell can accompany gout, particularly with several joints involved.
Something Needing Assessment
The same combination can also mean joint infection — only assessment can tell which is happening.
This describes what can happen, not a checklist for working out which applies to you. If you have a hot, swollen joint with fever, see “When Should You Get Medical Help” below rather than deciding for yourself.
Can Gout Make You Feel Generally Unwell?
It is possible to feel non-specifically unwell during a flare — tired, shivery, off-colour, or simply not yourself — as part of the same inflammatory response that can cause fever. This is a recognised feature of gout’s biology, not something separate from it.
But general unwellness alongside a hot, swollen joint is treated seriously in UK guidance, not brushed aside as an expected part of a flare. NHS guidance is explicit that sudden joint pain and swelling together with a high temperature, feeling hot, cold or shivery, or feeling sick or unable to eat, needs urgent same-day assessment. Mild systemic symptoms can genuinely be part of a gout attack, but that does not lower the threshold for getting checked — if anything, it is exactly the combination UK guidance asks you to act on.
Why Can a Gout Flare Affect More Than the Joint?
Gout starts when urate crystals form in a joint and the immune system reacts to them much as it would to a threat, releasing inflammatory chemical messengers — cytokines such as IL-1, IL-6 and TNF-α — that cause the heat, redness, swelling and pain of a flare. These messengers do not always stay confined to the joint; when enough are released, particularly during a flare affecting several joints, they can circulate more widely and produce whole-body effects like fever and fatigue.
It is broadly the same family of chemical signals the body uses to respond to infection — part of why gout and joint infection can look similar from the outside, even though the underlying cause is completely different.
Fever With Gout: Why Infection Matters
A hot, red, swollen, very painful joint together with fever or feeling generally unwell is also how septic arthritis — a bacterial infection inside the joint — can present. It is a medical emergency: untreated joint infection can damage the joint quickly and, in some cases, become life-threatening. NICE guidance on gout is direct here, advising that septic arthritis be actively considered whenever someone presents with a painful, red, swollen joint, and that suspected cases be referred for immediate assessment rather than waiting for routine test results.
There is no reliable way to distinguish gout from joint infection without a clinical assessment, and no specific fever level that rules gout in or infection out. A mild or low fever does not make infection less likely, and no fever does not rule infection out either. If in doubt, get it checked.
Gout vs Septic Arthritis: Why It Can Be Hard to Tell
Gout and septic arthritis can look almost identical from the outside — both cause a joint that is hot, swollen, red and severely painful, sometimes with fever. Doctors do not rely on how a joint looks or feels alone; assessment typically involves your history, an examination, and often testing a sample of joint fluid, the most reliable way to check for both urate crystals and infection at once.
Our guide to how gout is diagnosed covers that process in full, and our gout vs pseudogout guide covers septic arthritis as part of comparing gout with a similar-looking condition — this page focuses specifically on fever and safety, not on re-explaining that process.
When Should You Get Medical Help?
UK guidance draws a clear line between a routine flare and one needing urgent attention. Fever or feeling unwell is one of the clearest signals that a joint problem needs prompt assessment, not home management.
Routine
One joint, typical gout symptoms, no fever, and an existing gout diagnosis and plan. Manage as usual — see our attack guide — and follow up with your GP as normal.
Urgent — Same Day
A hot, swollen, painful joint with fever or feeling unwell or shivery; rapidly worsening symptoms; being unable to bear weight; or a first-ever episode with no diagnosis. Contact your GP for a same-day appointment, or call NHS 111 outside hours.
Emergency
You feel very unwell, are struggling to function, or symptoms are rapidly worsening. Attend A&E or call 999.
Outside the UK, the equivalent is your own local urgent or same-day service — what matters is being seen quickly.
“I’ve Had Gout Before” — Does That Rule Out Something Else?
It is natural to assume that if you have had gout attacks before, a similar-feeling episode is probably just another one. But a previous gout diagnosis does not rule out infection in a new episode — clinical case reports have documented joint infection developing in people with known gout, sometimes in a joint gout has affected before. Crystals in a joint fluid sample do not rule out infection either, since the two can occasionally occur together, which is one reason doctors test for infection even when gout looks likely.
Most sudden joint flares in someone with known gout genuinely are gout. But “I’ve had this before” is not, on its own, a reason to skip assessment if fever or the other urgent signs above are present.
What Should You Do While You Wait for Medical Advice?
None of this should delay assessment if you have any urgent or emergency signs above — these are safe measures for while you wait, not a substitute for being seen.
- Rest the joint and avoid weight-bearing if it is painful.
- Keep drinking normally, unless a clinician has told you otherwise.
- Take your temperature if easy to do, and mention it when assessed.
- Do not stop or change prescribed gout medicine — check with your prescriber first.
- Do not wait to see if it settles if urgent or emergency signs are present.
For pain relief and home-care during a flare, see our what to do during a gout attack guide — this page focuses on fever and when it needs urgent attention.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can gout give you a temperature?
Yes, particularly if more than one joint is affected, though it is not the most common gout symptom. A high or persistent temperature alongside a hot, swollen joint needs same-day assessment to rule out infection.
Can gout make you feel sick or unwell?
Yes, fatigue, chills or general unwellness can accompany a flare, especially a more severe or multi-joint one. NHS guidance treats feeling unwell alongside a hot, swollen joint as a reason to seek urgent care, not something to wait out.
Is fever common during a gout attack?
It is not the most common feature — most flares do not involve fever — but it is not rare either, particularly with multiple joints. Research on gout’s inflammatory biology describes fever as “not uncommon” in these flares.
How can doctors tell gout from a joint infection?
Through history, examination and, usually, testing a sample of joint fluid, which can check for both urate crystals and infection at once. Our how gout is diagnosed guide covers this in full.
Can you have septic arthritis if you already have gout?
Yes. Having gout does not protect against joint infection, and case reports have documented the two occurring together, sometimes in the same joint. A previous diagnosis is not a reason to skip assessment if infection is possible.
Should I seek medical help for fever during a gout attack?
Yes. A hot, swollen, painful joint together with fever or feeling generally unwell needs same-day medical assessment under UK guidance, rather than waiting to see if it settles.
Does a high temperature always mean it is not gout?
No — fever can occur with gout itself. But it does not rule out infection either, and there is no reliable way to tell the two apart without assessment, so fever should prompt medical review either way.
This page is for general information only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of a qualified healthcare professional with any questions about a medical condition, especially new, worsening or concerning symptoms such as fever with a painful joint.