Does Kinesiology tape counter exercise-related impairments of balance in the elderly?

BACKGROUND: Maintaining balance is an essential requirement for the performance of daily tasks and sporting activities, particularly in older adults to prevent falls and associated injuries. Kinesiology tape has gained great popularity in sports and is frequently used as a tool for performance enhancement. However, there is little research investigating its influence on balance. RESEARCH QUESTION: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of Kinesiology tape on dynamic balance, postural stability and knee proprioception after physical activity in healthy, older adults. METHODS: Twelve physically active, healthy men aged 63-77 years performed the test on two separate days, with and without Kinesiology tape at the knee joint (prospective intervention with cross-over design). Dynamic balance during an obstacle-crossing task, postural stability in a single-leg stance test, and knee joint position sense as a measure of proprioception were examined before and after 30 min of downhill walking on a treadmill. The influences of taping condition and physical activity on all parameters were statistically tested using factorial ANOVAs. RESULTS: Factorial ANOVA revealed significant time × taping condition interaction effects on all performance parameters (p < 0.05), indicating that the exercise-related changes in dynamic balance, postural stability and knee proprioception differed between the two taping conditions. The deterioration of performance was always greater when no tape was used. SIGNIFICANCE: This study demonstrated that physical exercise significantly deteriorated dynamic balance, postural stability and knee proprioception in older men. These effects can be attenuated through the usage of Kinesiology tape. By preventing exercise-related impairments of balance, Kinesiology tape might help reduce the risk of sports-associated falls and associated injuries.

Eccentric Exercise, Kinesiology Tape, and Balance in Healthy Men.

CONTEXT: Deficits in balance have been identified as a possible risk factor for knee injuries in athletes. Despite a lack of evidence for its effectiveness, kinesiology tape (KT) is widely used to prevent knee injuries. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the influence of KT at the knee joint on balance ability in healthy men after eccentric exercise. DESIGN: Crossover study. SETTING: University laboratory. PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS: Twelve young men with no history of lower limb injury volunteered for the study (age = 23.3 ± 2.6 years). All participants were students enrolled in a sports science program. INTERVENTION(S): Participants performed the balance test with and without KT at the knee joint on 2 separate days. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): The ability to maintain balance was assessed during a single-legged-stance test using a computerized balance-stability test system. The test was performed before and after 30 minutes of downhill walking on a treadmill. RESULTS: Eccentric exercise resulted in a deterioration of balance ability, which was attenuated by the use of KT. Further analyses revealed that the effectiveness of KT depended on the participant's balance status, with the preventive effect being greater in participants presenting with poorer baseline balance ability. CONCLUSIONS: Applied to the knee joint, KT counteracted the exercise-related deterioration of balance ability observed when no tape was used. Participants presenting with below-average balance ability received more benefit from KT. By preventing exercise-related impairment of balance ability, KT might help to reduce the risk of sport-associated knee injuries.

Why do we suffer more ACL injuries in the cold? A pilot study into potential risk factors.

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to investigate temperature-related changes in different neuro-muscular parameters, to elucidate the reasons for the increased likeliness of injuries of the anterior cruciate ligament under cold environmental conditions. DESIGN: Repeated measures study design. METHODS: To induce peripheral cooling of the knee joint and thigh muscles, ten healthy, female subjects underwent 30 min of exposure to a cold environment. Both knee extensor and flexor muscles were examined for electromyographic activity, maximum voluntary contraction strength, rate of force development and force sense. Measures of knee laxity were obtained by computerized arthrometry. RESULTS: Following cold exposure, rate of force development of the knee flexor muscles was significantly reduced (p = 0.016). Left-shifts of electromyography power spectra indicated changes in neural drive to the medial and lateral head of the vastus muscle. Maximum strength, force sense and knee laxity were not affected by the intervention. CONCLUSION: The reduced capacity of cold knee flexor muscles to explosively generate force may limit the hamstrings' capability to counter strong and fast contractions of the knee extensor muscles that cause anterior shear force on the tibia and, thus, strain the anterior cruciate ligament.

A pilot study of the effect of Kinesiology tape on knee proprioception after physical activity in healthy women.

OBJECTIVES: Kinesiology tape has gained significant popularity in recent years and is widely used as an adjunct for treatment and prevention of musculoskeletal injuries. However, evidence regarding its influence on knee proprioception is scarce. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of Kinesiology tape on knee proprioception after physical activity in healthy women. It was hypothesized that Kinesiology tape enhances knee proprioception. DESIGN: Longitudinal analysis, pretest-posttest design. METHODS: Twelve young women with healthy knees were tested for knee proprioception without the use of Kinesiology tape and wearing Kinesiology tape at the knee. The joint position sense was measured at the start and after a 30-min uphill walking protocol on a treadmill. Outcome was the knee angle deviation. RESULTS: No significant difference of proprioceptive performance between the application with Kinesiology tape and without Kinesiology tape was found after uphill walking (p > 0.05). However, when the participants' results for knee angle deviation were graded into good (< 6.1°) and poor ( > 6.1°), Kinesiology tape significantly enhanced those with poor proprioceptive ability after uphill walking, compared to the untaped knee (p = 0.002). CONCLUSIONS: This study has shown that the application of Kinesiology tape did not improve knee proprioception in a group of healthy young women. However, it also has demonstrated that Kinesiology tape provided significant proprioceptive enhancement at the knee joint after uphill walking in healthy women with poor proprioceptive ability. This may support its use in sports medicine for preventing knee injuries.