Effect of Kinesiology Tape on Measurements of Balance in Subjects With Chronic Ankle Instability: A Randomized Controlled Trial.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the immediate and prolonged effects (7d) of Kinesiology Tape (KT) on balance in subjects with chronic ankle instability using computerized dynamic posturography (CDP).

DESIGN: A 7-day follow-up, single-blind randomized controlled trial.

SETTING: University community.

PARTICIPANTS: Subjects (N=36) were screened for possible eligibility criteria, and 30 successfully completed the study protocol. Of these, 15 were randomly assigned to the experimental group (KT: 5 men, 10 women), and 15 were assigned to the control group (placebo tape: 10 men, 5 women).

INTERVENTIONS: The experimental group was taped for a lateral ankle sprain with KT. In the control group, a placebo tape was used. Balance was assessed under the following 3 conditions: without taping, immediately after application, and after 7 days of use.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The CDP device used in this study was the Smart Equitest version 8.2. CDP analysis was conducted using the Sensory Organization Test (SOT). As primaries outcome measures, the composite SOT score and composite SOT strategy were chosen. The partial score for SOT condition 2 and its strategy were considered as the secondary outcomes measures.

RESULTS: Repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) demonstrated that there was not a significant interaction between group and time in the composite SOT score (F=.239; P=.73), SOT condition 2 (F=.333; P=.705), and SOT strategy 2 (F=.899; P=.43). Additionally, repeated-measures ANOVA showed a significant effect for time (composite SOT score: F=40.69; P≤.01; SOT condition 2: F=4.61; P=.014; SOT strategy 2: F=.899; P=.413; composite SOT strategy: F=15.14; P≤.01). Specifically, post hoc analysis showed that both groups obtained improvements in composite SOT scores immediately after tape application and 7 days of use.

CONCLUSIONS: According to our results, the SOT scores of both the KT and control groups improved during follow-up. No differences between them were observed during the follow-up in most balance measurements. The observed changes may be related to a subjective increase in confidence after the tape application.