Short-Term Effect of Kinesio Taping of Lower-Leg Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation Pattern on Gait Parameter and Dynamic Balance in Chronic Stroke with Foot Drop.

Dongyun Lee,Youngsook Bae

doi:10.3390/healthcare9030271

Dongyun Lee, Youngsook Bae

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare9030271

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Abstract

The aim of this study is to identify the effectiveness of proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) leg Kinesio taping on gait parameters and dynamic balance in chronic stroke patients with foot drop. A total 22 chronic stroke patients were randomly assigned to experimental (n = 11) and control groups (n = 11). All subjects underwent conventional therapy and gait training for 50 min. The experimental group additionally received KT of tibialis anterior muscle (TA) and hamstring muscles according to the PNF pattern. The control group received KT of only TA. The primary outcome measures that the gait parameter are gait velocity, cadence, step length, and stride length. Dynamic balance was measured by the timed up-and-go test (TUG) time and activity-specific balance confidence scale (ABC) as the secondary outcomes. All of the measurements were performed baseline and 24 h after intervention. Our results showed that the experimental group showed significant improvements in gait velocity, cadence, step length, stride length and TUG, and ABC score compared with the control group. We conclude that the short term effect of application of lower-leg KT according to the PNF pattern increased the gait ability and dynamic balance of chronic stroke patients with foot drop.

Highlights

Reduced gait ability in stroke patients is more problematic for the swing phase as opposed to the stance phase, and in particular, the gait in these patients is characterized by foot drop caused by reduced ankle dorsiflexion during the swing [4,5]
The purpose of this study is to identify the effects of proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF) leg Kinesio taping on gait parameters and balance confidence in stroke patients with foot drop
The primary finding of this study was that the experimental group showed a significant increase in the velocity (p = 0.013), cadence (p = 0.002), step length (p = 0.002), and stride length (p = 0.005), and secondary finding showed a significant increase in TUG (p = 0.007) and activity-specific balance confidence scale (ABC) (p = 0.001)

Summary

Introduction

Stroke patients can distribute more than 80% of their body weight toward the nonparetic side, with only short durations of weight load on the paretic side, thereby reducing their balancing abilities [1,2]. This can limit the motion of stroke patients and increase their risk of falls [3]. Relevant interventions include functional electrical stimulation [6], ankle foot orthosis [7], and peroneal stimulation [8], which are primarily applied to the tibialis anterior muscle. Applying a Kinesio tape to the lower extremity during post-stroke rehabilitation is reported to relieve lower-extremity spasticity, improving lower–extremity motor function, improving balance, and enhance ambulation and gait parameters in patients [10]

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