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Are the crystals that cause gout and pseudogout the only crystals seen in synovial fluid?
Although monosodium urate crystals, which cause gout, and calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate (CPPD) crystals, which cause pseudogout, are the most commonly identified crystals in synovial fluid, many other crystals or particles may be encountered during polarized light microscopy. Some of these crystals cause disease and some are just interesting incidental findings
Crystals and Particles Seen in Synovial Fluid
| Monosodium Urate Crystals | Starch from Examination Gloves | Hemoglobin |
| Calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate crystals | Cholesterol crystals | Aluminum |
| Calcium hydroxyapatite crystals (and other basic calcium phosphate crystals) | Lipid droplets Foreign organic matter (e.g., plant thorns) | Cystine Xanthine |
| Calcium oxalate crystals | Metallic fragments from prosthetic joints | Charcot–Leyden crystals |
| Injectable corticosteroid crystals | Immunoglobulin crystals in cryoglobulinemia | Amyloid |
