Taping is increasingly used in the field of sports medicine/ injuries, where more and more athletes, footballers, tennis players, cyclists can be seen on TV wearing it while competing.

What does it help?

Research is at an early stage, it is only in the last few years that any controlled trials have emerged and currently these are not robust enough to claim Taping as an effective sole treatment for any condition.

How does it work?

It can be applied in various ways which can serve to:

  • Take pressure off painful areas, this reduces the tension through weak or inflamed muscles and tendons reducing the pain and further damage caused if the patient has to continue to use the joints, for work, day to day activities etc.
  • Relax muscles, depending how it is applied the tape is thought to activate stretch receptors in the skin which feed back to influence the control of the muscle tension under the skin or activate muscle spindles within the muscle which would increase the activity and endurance of the muscle.
  • Promote blood and lymphatic. When applied to the skin with stretch the elastic tape naturally wants to recoil, lift skin and fascia to allow blood and lymph flow to increase which is thought to speed up the healing process.
  • While wearing the tape, movement of the joint/region is not restricted and therefore allows the wearer to continue to use the effected joint during the recovery period.

We use this tape on both amateur and professional sports men and women, on adolescents with poor posture, various postural pain syndromes and to protect inflamed muscles and tendons.

Research

Thelen et.al. (2008) The clinical efficacy of kinesiotape for shoulder pain: A randomised, double-blinded, clinical trial. Journal of orthopaedic and sports physical therapy
Hsu et.al. (2009) The effects of taping on scapular kinematics and muscle performance in baseball players with shoulder impingement syndrome. Journal of electromyography and kinesiology.
Aspegren et.al. (2007) Volleyball player with costochondritis. Journal of manipulative and physiological therapeutics
Chen et.al. Effectsa of kinesio taping on the timing of vastus medialis obliques and vastus lateralis muscle for person with patellofemoral pain, Department of Sports Medicine, China Medical University.
Tsai et.al. (2009) Could kinesio tape replace the bandage in decongestive lymphatic therapy for breast-cancer related lymphedema? A pilot study. Support care cancer