The purpose of this study was to report patient-centered results as well as the completion of major study procedures from a 9-month pilot online randomised controlled trial of cherry extract vs diet modification. In an online research, researchers randomly assigned 84 patients with physician-confirmed gout to either cherry extract or dietitian-assisted diet adjustment for gout. All research results were gathered through the use of the internet and phone calls. They completed crucial research processes. They evaluated the acceptability and feasibility of the intervention, as well as participant satisfaction with the study website. The intervention was seen as simple, entertaining, comprehensible, and beneficial. Participant satisfaction with website interaction and content was exceptionally high, with 85 percent or more expressing moderate to great satisfaction. At 6 months, the diet modification group consumed significantly less total calories, total carbohydrate, and saturated fat than the cherry extract group; at 9 months, the differences were negligible. Six of the eight Health Assessment Questionnaire sections/domains improved substantially from baseline to 9 months in the cherry extract group, compared to two in the diet change group. An online diet evaluation tool, gout flare assessment, physician confirmation of gout diagnosis, patient reporting of categorization criteria, and centralised laboratory-assisted serum urate testing were all finalised for a future experiment.
The high patient acceptance and practicality of the research/intervention, as well as the completion of essential study protocols, imply that hypothesis-testing online gout trials with cherry extract and/or diet modification can be carried out in the future.
