Effect of Peat Intervention on Pain and Gait in Patients with Knee Osteoarthritis: A Prospective, Double-Blind, Randomized, Controlled Study
rct Grade A 2020 n=41 Open access
Authors: Kim, M., Lee, K.H., Han, S.H., Lee, S.J., Kim, C.G., Choi, J.H., Hwang, S.H., Park, S.B.
Journal: Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine 2020 : Article 8093526
DOI: 10.1155/2020/8093526
PubMed: PMID 32419828
Key Findings
- 41 knee osteoarthritis patients randomized to a real peat group (n=22) or a sham control (n=19)
- Peat, sourced from Cheollipo, Korea, was heated to 70°C, cooled to 40°C, and applied to both knees for 20 minutes across 8 sessions over 5 days
- The sham control received an identical heat protocol, but with an impermeable barrier blocking any chemical transfer from the peat — isolating chemical from thermal effect
- Pain (VAS) improved significantly more in the real-peat group despite equal heat exposure in both arms
- Gait velocity, cadence, and knee range of motion also improved significantly more in the peat group
- First study to analyze peat's effect on gait parameters, not just pain scores
A rigorously designed double-blind RCT that isolates peat’s chemical contribution from its thermal effect: both arms received identical heat exposure, but the sham control had an impermeable barrier preventing any chemical transfer from the peat. Because temperature was matched, the significantly larger improvement in pain, gait velocity, and knee mobility in the real-peat group cannot be explained by heat alone — this is some of the clearest available evidence that peat’s benefit for osteoarthritis is chemical, not just thermal. It’s also the first study in this evidence base to measure gait and kinematic outcomes rather than pain scores alone.
rctknee-osteoarthritispeat-mud-packgait-analysissham-controlledthermal-vs-chemical