Kinesiology Taping Therapy: Uses, Benefits and Types

Elastic Therapeutic Tape, also called Kinesiology Tape, Kinesio Tape, K-Tape is a rehabilitative method used to facilitate the body’s natural healing process while providing support and stability to muscles and joints without restricting the body’s range of motion. Tapping is usually used by physiotherapists to change Muscle Tone, Move Lymphatic Fluids, Correct Movement Patterns, and Improve Posture.

Kinesiology tape is a therapeutic tape that is applied to the body to decrease pain, reduce swelling, and improve functionality. The process involves placing Strips of Kinesiology tape on the body in Specific directions for therapeutic purposes. In this blog post, we are going to discuss about the types, uses, and benefits of kinesiology taping therapy. 

What is kinesiology tape and what is it used for?

Kinesiology tape is a thin, flexible tape that was developed to aid muscle movement and enhance athletic performance. It is often used to relieve pain, reduce swelling and inflammation and provide support to joints and muscles.

The elasticity, or stretchiness, of kinesiology tape allows for movement. This makes it different from the more rigid rehabilitation tape or support adhesives that have no stretch to them.

Those are used to keep muscles and joints from moving and provide support after a sports-related injury, and for people who have conditions that make it difficult to activate muscles or control muscle contraction.

A 2021 survey published in the International Journal of Sports Physical Therapy found that most professionals use kinesiology tape for post-injury treatment, to help lessen pain and to stimulate the muscles into action.

In this blog post we are going to know about the uses and benefits of kinesiology taping and from where to access these services in Lahore.

How Kinesiology Tape is used

Kinesiology tape has many specific uses. Your physical therapist can assess your current situation and injury to decide on the best use of the tape.

Some common uses of kinesiology tape include:

• Allowing motion: Kinesiology tape can be used to help improve muscular firing and contraction patterns. This can lead to normalized muscular tone and can also help improve athletic performance.
• Inhibition and pain management: Kinesiology tape can be used to help decrease pain and muscle spasms that may occur after injury. It can help decrease your nerves’ pain signals to the brain, which can help decrease muscle guarding and protective spasms.
• Support and stability: If you have a condition that requires a specific joint to be held in place, kinesiology taping may be right for you. Conditions like patellofemoral stress syndrome, iliotibial band friction syndrome, or shoulder instability may benefit from extra support provided by kinesiology tape. The tape can support your joint while still allowing for some motion.
• Decreasing swelling: If you have had swelling from an injury or surgery, kinesiology tape may help decrease the swelling by decreasing pressure between the skin and underlying tissues. This provides a pathway for excess fluids to travel through. Kinesiology tape is sometimes used in lymphedema management or for superficial contusions (bruises).
• Scar tissue management: After surgery or trauma, you may have a scar over the area that was injured. Sometimes the tissue underneath the scar binds to your skin and underlying fascia. This scar tissue can limit your normal mobility and range of motion. Kinesiology tape can be used to gently pull on scar tissue, providing a low-intensity, long-duration stretch to the tight collagen that makes up scar tissue.

Types of Kinesiology Tape

Kinesiology tape can be applied in different ways, depending on why it’s needed. Your physical therapist can show you how to use the tape and cut the adhesive strips into the right configuration.

Tape shapes include:

The “I” strip

This shape can be used to make the other types of strips below. Typically “I” strips are used to support muscles, tendons, and ligaments. They are often used to facilitate your rotator cuff, gluteus muscles, quadriceps, or Achilles tendon. It can also be used on your low back and middle back to help you maintain proper posture.

The “X” strip

This type is used when kinesiology tape is needed to cover a large area or cross multiple joints. The tabs of the “X” strip cross over sensitive areas such as the back of your knees or front of your elbows. This strip is commonly used to facilitate your hamstrings, which cross both your hip joint and the back part of your knee joint.

The “Y” strip

This strip is used to cross sensitive areas of your body such as behind your knee or in the front of your elbow. It is also commonly used for applications to control the position of your kneecap as in patellofemoral stress syndrome or a subluxing patella. The “Y” strip is typically not as long as the “X” strip.

The “fan” strip

This type can help control swelling of your leg or arm. It is commonly used in lymphedema management or for superficial contusions and swelling.

The “lift” strip

Commonly referred to as the Band-Aid, this strip is often used to support injured tissues or to treat muscle knots or trigger points. It helps to lift skin and tissues off of sore muscles and trigger points. It is also used to treat superficial bruises.

Your therapist or sports medicine provider can ensure that you’re placing the kinesiology tape in the proper position and that the tape is not too tight or restrictive. They’ll also let you know how long to wear the kinesiology tape.

Does It Really Work?

More research needs to be done to understand the mechanisms of how the tape works and if it truly lives up to its claims.

Recent studies have shown that the use of kinesiology tape can improve muscular contractions in the vastus medialis, a specific part of the quadriceps muscle responsible for controlling the position of your kneecap. They’ve also demonstrated an improved range of motion in the lower back, immediately after the application of kinesiology tape.

To support the use of kinesiology tape to improve athletic performance, Rock Tape conducted a study of five cyclists and found that they performed 2% to 6% better with the application of kinesiology tape (specifically RockTape) than without the tape. However, this study may be biased, with RockTape as its sponsor and only five athletes with no control group.

Other studies have examined the effect of kinesiology taping and pain, swelling, and improved mobility, with varied results

Summary

Kinesiology tape is a type of stretchy tape made of cotton and nylon. It is applied to the body in different ways to reduce swelling and pain from an injury, increase mobility, and prevent muscle spasms.

It is important to apply and remove the tape properly. A physical therapist can help with this as well as advise you on how and when you should be using it. People with certain health problems should not use kinesiology tape. To get customized treatment Dr. Riaz Ahmed at NBR clinic is providing quality kinesiology taping therapy in Lahore.

FAQs

What does the kinesiology tape do?

Kinesiology tape is a thin, flexible tape that was developed to aid muscle movement and enhance athletic performance.

What are the 5 main physiological effects of kinesio tape?

When applied, the tape has the ability to re-educate the neuromuscular system, reduce pain, enhance performance, prevent injury, and promote good circulation and healing while allowing for normal range of motion.

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