Gait retraining relieves arthritic knee pain and slows cartilage damage

A year-long randomized controlled trial led by University of Utah engineers found that participants with mild-to-moderate osteoarthritis who adjusted their walking gait experienced pain relief equivalent to medication and showed significantly less knee cartilage degradation than a placebo group. The study was published in The Lancet Rheumatology.

This is the first rigorous placebo-controlled study of this biomechanical intervention for osteoarthritis. Results apply to mild-to-moderate medial knee osteoarthritis specifically; effectiveness in other forms may differ.