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Table 2 Causes of gout in films and television episodes in which causes were depicted (n=33 films and television episodes)

From: “An apple pie a day does not keep the doctor away”: Fictional depictions of gout in contemporary film and television

Cause of gout

Total

N=33

Historical setting

N=14a

Modern-day setting

N=19

Examples

Overindulgence of food and alcohol

20/33, 61%

8/14, 57%

12/19, 63%

Alf Roberts: “Saying it’s all my own fault, eating the wrong food, drinking too much, carrying too much weight.” (Coronation Street, S1Ep3641, ITV)

Colleague of Dr Charlie Bradford: “Couldn’t you have laid off the red wine and overindulgence for one night?” (Doctors, S11Ep234, BBC)

Obesity

14/33, 42%

6/14, 43%

8/19, 42%

Reginald Rodgers: “Mainly obese men with fatty rich diets.” (Gut punch, S1Ep1)

Mrs Wolowitz: “How can one little toe hurt so bad?”.

Howard Wolowitz: “Maybe because that little piggy is being crushed by the barn!” (The Big Bang Theory, S7Ep9, CBS)

Ageing

13/33, 39%

6/14, 43%

7/19, 37%

Hank Hill: “Gout … that’s an old man’s disease.” (King of the Hill, S3Ep18, Fox Network)

Dana Scully: “Presbyopia’s a natural part of the ageing process. We’re all gonna go through it, Mulder. Just wait til you get gout. Gout!” (The X-Files, S11Ep9, Fox Network)

Biological

4/33, 12%

0, 0%

4/19, 21%

Monica Geller: “Do you, or any of your blood relatives, have … gout?” (Friends, S9Ep22, NBC)

  1. aOne episode had two characters with gout, these were counted separately