The effect of quadriceps kinesiotaping on the dynamic balance of young healthy women after fatigue: A randomized controlled trial

Abstract

BackgroundBalance is a key factor in performing daily activities and the quadriceps muscle plays an important role in regaining balance following imbalance. Quadriceps fatigue may cause disruption in sending proprioception signals to the central nervous system and may, ultimately, lead to motor dysfunction and increased fluctuating dynamic and static balance which is followed by an increased risk of falling. Based on conclusions from previous studies it is proposed that kinesiotaping (KT) might be effective in the reduction of muscle fatigue and eventually balance. ObjectiveTo investigate the effect of quadriceps KT on the dynamic balance of young healthy non-athlete women following local fatigue. DesignA Single-blind parallel randomized clinical trial. Method28 healthy women aged from 18 to 30 years were selected using the convenience sampling method. They were thoroughly evaluated with regard to the inclusion and exclusion criteria and randomly divided into two groups of kinesiotaping (n = 14) and non-tape (n = 14) using coin tossing. Balance measurement was performed on both groups before and after fatigue using the Y balance test. Both groups performed the fatigue protocol, but only the KT group was taped. ResultsResults demonstrated that, the mean of normalized reach distances at anterior (KT: 1.014 ± 0.073, non-tape: 0.964 ± 0.097), posteromedial (KT: 0.816 ± 0.125, non-tape: 0.809 ± 0.076) and posterolateral (KT: 0.794 ± 0.102, non-tape: 0.753 ± 0.093) directions in the Y balance test had no significant difference between both groups after fatigue (p > 0.05). ConclusionOur findings indicated no significant effect of quadriceps KT on the dynamic balance of young healthy women after fatigue.