Trial design and participants
diabetes or heart disease, KOA, pain, primary KOA, knee pain
SECONDARY, SENSORY DISTURBANCES
This was a single-blinded (assessor), randomized, controlled clinical trial that randomized participants to receive either PEMFT or LLLT. The study was approved by the ethical review board at the University of Haifa. All participants provided written informed consent before participation and after a detailed explanation of the study objectives and design. The study was registered at the ISRCTN registry in 20/04/2022 with trial ID: ISRCTN17001174.Participants were recruited at an outpatient orthopedic clinic in Israel. The sample size was calculated using a G power computer program based on previously reported data [Participants were enrolled into the study if they met the following inclusion criteria: diagnosed with primary KOA, aged between 50 and 75 years, symptomatic knee pain of 6 months or longer, pain level ≥ 4 out of 10 according to the visual analog scale (VAS), independent walking ability of at least 30 m, and grade 2–3 KOA according to the Kellgren–Lawrence (KL) classification scale [The severity of KOA according to the KL scale was assessed by the referring orthopedist based on a radiographic image of the knee taken with the patient in the standing position.Participants with secondary KOA, significant sensory disturbances in the lower extremities, uncontrolled diabetes or heart disease, body mass index (BMI) of > 40, presence of a pacemaker, previous history of lower limb surgery, implants in the body, or inability to understand simple instructions were excluded from the study.