Whether cold or hot packs are needed for gout depends on the condition and usually depends on the duration of the gout. Gout can be categorized into acute attack, intermittent period and chronic period, and different care should be adopted during different onset periods. 1. Acute attack: gout usually has a local inflammatory reaction, manifested by increased blood flow and localized edema. If you choose to apply hot compresses will generally cause a gradual increase in local blood flow, inflammation will increase, and the symptoms of redness, swelling and pain will be significantly aggravated. Therefore, cold compresses should be applied during the acute stage of gout. 2. Intermittent and chronic period: this period of asymptomatic patients can be hot compresses, local hot compresses will generally accelerate the dissolution of gout crystals and gout stones, to avoid gout stone deposits. But the hot compresses should not be too long and the temperature should not be too high, too long or too high temperature will stimulate the acute attack of gouty arthritis. In addition, hot compresses should not be massaged locally, which may also lead to an acute attack of gout. It is recommended that gout patients go to the hospital in time, under the guidance of the doctor to carry out the appropriate treatment.