Effect of Short-Term Kinesiology Taping on Knee Proprioception and Quadriceps Performance in Healthy Individuals.

Zhen Wei,Xiao-Xi Wang,Lin Wang

doi:10.3389/fphys.2020.603193

Zhen Wei, Xiao-Xi Wang + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2020.603193

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Abstract

Background: Kinesiology taping (KT) is well known measure for preventing musculoskeletal injuries. Our study aims to explore the actual effects of KT on healthy participants’ knee proprioception and quadriceps performance within 1 h.Methods: A total of 35 healthy male amateur runners were recruited in our study. Four taping sequences were randomly allocated to four different weeks, namely, no taping, placebo taping, KT with tension, and KT with no tension. A CON-TREX isokinetic dynamometer was used in assessing the participants’ knee proprioception and muscle strength of knee extension and flexion at 60°/s. The electromyography (EMG) signals of medial oblique muscle and vastus lateralis were collected using Myon EMG system synchronously. Two-way repeated measures ANOVA was used in exploring the difference between taping and time effects, and the significance was set to alpha <0.05.Results: Significant interaction effect was found between the taping groups and time effect [F (3.32) = 2.389, p = 0.029, η2 = 0.050] in the peak torque during the concentric contraction of quadriceps. No significant interaction and no significant differences between groups and time effects in knee proprioception and muscle activation.Conclusion: The effect of KT seems insufficiently large to impose a positive effect on healthy people within short periods. Health participants may not necessarily use KT to increase muscle activation and proprioception of knee.

Highlights

Kinesiology taping (KT), an elastic, water-resistant, and air permeable tape, was developed by Kenzo Kase in the 1970s, the tape can stretch to 120–140% of its original length and can recoil after application (Kase et al, 2003)
Four taping sequences were randomized in a counterbalanced order: (1) no taping (NT), (2) placebo taping (PT), (3) KT with tension (KT-T), and (4) KT with no tension (KT-NT)
We only found a significant interaction effect between the taping and time effect groups [F (3.32) = 2.389, p = 0.029, η2 = 0.050] in peak torque during the concentric contraction of the quadriceps (Table 1), but Post hoc analysis showed no difference among the taping methods within short periods

Summary

Introduction

Kinesiology taping (KT), an elastic, water-resistant, and air permeable tape, was developed by Kenzo Kase in the 1970s, the tape can stretch to 120–140% of its original length and can recoil after application (Kase et al, 2003). Previous studies verified that the recoiling force direction of the tape is the same as that of a muscle contraction, is. Knee joint proprioception and the lower extremity muscle performance play an essential role in preventing musculoskeletal injuries (Hosp et al, 2015; Pope et al, 2017). Improvement of proprioception sensitivity and quadriceps performance may reduce the risk of injuries (Oliveira et al, 2016; Bertelsen et al, 2017; Pope et al, 2017). Given the popularity of KT among sports enthusiasts, numerous studies demonstrated that KT can improve knee proprioception (Hosp et al, 2015) and activate the quadriceps (Liu et al, 2019). Our study aims to explore the actual effects of KT on healthy participants’ knee proprioception and quadriceps performance within 1 h

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Results

Conclusion