1.
Aim
To use peer reviewed journals to assess
whether or not kinesio tape works better then traditional tapes, if so in what
ways and in what instances should it be used.
2.
Intended Audience
The general public but also anyone involved
in health and fitness. There is also assumed knowledge as to what Kinesio tape is.
3.
Introduction
Kinesio tape is not a new product, in fact it
has been around for about 25 years or so[1]. Dr Kenso Kase developed the tape in
the 1970’s and it has been used in Asia through out this time[2]. So why has it suddenly exploded in
the last few years. The main reason was the 2008 Olympics. The tape was donated
to 58 different countries1 to use on their athletes during the games, raising its profile
greatly on the world stage.
The proposed benefits of the tape include
improved posture, lymphatic drainage, blood flow, increased power output,
improved biomechanics, decreased pain, joint support, relaxing over loaded
muscles[1] [2] and generally making you an all round better individual! It’s like
there is nothing this tape can’t do.
Okay the last one isn’t true but you take the
point. How can this one tape do all of this? An evidence based approach to
rehabilitation and training is what all those involved in the health and
fitness sector should be striving for. As such I decided to look at the
evidence myself, to improve my own learning on the subject and to help give
other individuals an informed review.
4.
What the evidence says
Despite being around for a while the evidence
regarding the kinesio tape is shaky at best. There is little of it and what can
be found is of fairly low quality mainly due to poor study design or general bias [1],[3],[4]. So what does the current research conclude?
There is weak evidence to suggest there could
be increased muscle activity [2]. Huang C., et al, 2011,
found they could illicit greater muscle activity from the triceps surae (calf
muscles), however, this didn’t translate into higher vertical jump scores. As
such they conclude that there could be some benefit to rehabilitation of
injuries where by the goal is to increase muscle activity, however, they added
that their study was too small and did not cover a wide enough population in
order to create recommendations for the general public.
Campolo M., et al, 2013, found no difference between a traditional taping
method and Kinesio taping on anterior knee pain. Both techniques and materials
gave pain relief but it was noted the participants had never experienced any
taping before and therefore this could have been a placebo effect that was not
adjusted for. In conclusion a larger, more in depth, well designed study must
take place[5].
Ayatar A., et al, 2011, also found no
effect on either knee function or pain for those with patellofemoral pain
sydrome (pain under the knee cap)[6].
 |
| McConnell Taping [5] |
 |
| Kinesio Taping [5] |
Paoloni M., et al, 2011 and Castro-Sanchez A.M., et al, 2012 both investigated the effects of kinesio taping on
lower back pain. Both concluded that there could be some use of Kinesio taping
for rehabilitative purposes as they notice a small decrease in pain. However, they both state that further
research is needed to confirm finings. It should be noted in the case of
Paolini, 2011, there was no placebo group and only focused on a sub group of
those with chronic back pain (those who struggle with flexion relaxation)[7],[8].
Chang H.Y., et al, 2013, investigated the effects of Kinesio taping on medial
elbow epicondylar tendinopathy (often manifested as “golfers elbow”). This time
they did use a placebo group and found there was no difference at all between
the groups[9].
5.
Conclusion
It
would appear the old saying “if its too good to be true; it probably is” might apply here. I can’t find any scientific basis to any of the claims
regarding elastic type taping. This is not to say there aren’t studies out
there that do, and indeed would ask that if you know of any to bring them to my
attention as I would very much like to review them. I
am very much aware of the vast amount of anecdotal evidence of people who swear by the
stuff. Of course there is nothing wrong with this, if it gives those individuals the edge
they need to overcome injury or improve their training then great. The point is, that as
far as I can tell, these effects are based on placebo, short lived, seem to mask the root cause of an issue or at the very least that Kinesio
tape is no better than traditional types of taping.
The
real issue is why are you taping in the first place? Utilising taping in sport
should be done to help protect an area of weakness. Be that a joint or a
muscle. As such you are trying to limit range of motion (ROM) or offer support
and therefore you use a rigid tape. The taping is either compressing a joint,
moving it into a less painful position or unloading hypertonic muscles (overly
tense muscles). It is difficult to do this with elastic type tapes. It is also
still a temporary measure to allow you to be active in the short term, not a
cure (i.e. strapping a painful ankle before rugby). Realistically you shouldn’t
be playing on it if you have pain and weakness, you should be rehabilitating it. You should
be focusing on faulty postures to restore correct muscle length - tension relationships, reviewing the foods you eat, focusing on your
training, performing the correct rehabilitation exercises to ensure the joint
or muscle can support itself and doesn’t require the help of external
support (i.e. tape!!). This is how you improve performance, not through
taping.
Taping
of any kind can be useful for those playing at a high level to aid in their
recovery from injury as they are on contracts etc and are under pressure to
play. It can also be used by physios and rehabilitation specialists as an aid
to other treatment modalities. But it should not be relied upon as some sort of
quick fix (“you’ll be fine, just strap it up”). Personally I believe too many
people rely on tape in this way, rather than focusing on the underlying
concerns of gross joint instability, poor posture and other muscle imbalances.
This is not to say I don’t use tape, I have in the past and will do in the
future, but the intent is always to use it in conjunction with further
rehabilitation. In short, any taping should only be used as part of a clinical
risk assessment, taking into account benefits versus costs to the individual
(and in some cases the team as a whole), not just slap on the tape because
“that’s what the pros do”.
Hope
this was as enlightening for you reading it, as it was for me researching it.
All
the best
Gregory
Hunt
6.
References
[1] Williams S., et al. Kinesio in treatment and prevention of sporting injuries.
Sports Med. 2012 Feb 1;42(2):153-64.
[2] Huang C., et al.
Effect of the Kinesio tape to muscle activity and
vertical jump performance in
healthy inactive people. Biomedical Engineering Online. 2011; 10: 70.
[3] Morris D., et
al. Clinical effects of Kinesio Tex taping: A systematic review.
Physiotherapy Theory & Practice. 2013 May;29(4):259-70. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23088702
[4] Mostafavifar M., et
al. A systematic review of the effectiveness of kinesio taping in
musculoskeletal injury. Phys Sportsmed. 2012 Nov;40(4):33-40. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23306413
[5] Compolo M., et
al. A comparison of two taping techniques (Kinesio and McConnell) and their
effect on anterior knee pain during functional activities. The international Journal of Sports Physical
Therapy. 2013 April; 8(2): 105-110.
[6] Ayatar A., et al. Initial effects of kinesio taping in patients
with patellofemoral pain syndrome: a randomized, double-blind study.
Isokinetics and Exercise Science 2011;19(2):135-142. http://search.pedro.org.au/pedro/browserecord.php?recid=6153
[7] Paoloni M., et
al. Kinesio Taping reduces
disability and pain slightly in chronic non-specific low back pain: a
randomised trial. European Journal of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine. 2012;58(2):89-95.
http://www.tapingbase.net/sites/default/files/kinesio_taping_applied_to_lumbar_muscles_influences_clinical_and_electromyographic_characteristics_in_chronic_low_back_pain_patients.pdf
[8] Castro-Sánchez A.M., et al. Kinesio Taping reduces disability and pain slightly in chronic
non-specific low back pain: a randomised trial. Journal of
Physiotherapy. 2012;58(2):89-95.
[9] Chang H.Y., et
al. The Effectiveness of Kinesio
Taping for Athletes with Medial Elbow Epicondylar Tendinopathy. Int J Sports Med. 2013 Jun 14. [Epub
ahead of print] http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23771826
