The effect of exercise rehabilitation with exergames combined with ice therapy in the treatment of obese patients with gout: protocol for a clinical trial

Gout remains a leading cause of inflammatory arthritis worldwide, and the main risk factor for gout is persistent hyperuricemia. The clinical management of gout is mostly drug-based, and other treatment options are often ignored. This research proposal will explore whether exergames combined with ice therapy can help patients with gout to lose weight, relieve pain, improve the range of movement, improve quality of life, decrease uric acid level, decrease kinesiophobia and improve mental health of patients with gout.

This experiment will use a two-arm randomized controlled design. The study setting is at the Advanced Medical and Dental Institute (AMDI), Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM). Obese patients with gout (N = 30) will be randomly assigned to the control group (receive an exergames intervention) and intervention group (receive an exergames intervention combined with ice therapy). The outcomes measurement will be conducted before (baseline) and after intervention (4 weeks). Then, it will be followed up at 12 weeks.

To our knowledge, no study has investigated the effect of exergames and ice therapy among gout patients. This study is expected to demonstrate that exercise rehabilitation facilitated by exergames with ice therapy is more effective in gout management compared to a conventional rehabilitation intervention.

Chinese Clinical Trial Registry (ChiCTR2300070029). Registered on 31 March 2023.