The prolonged effect of Kinesio Taping on joint torque and muscle activity

Abstract

Purpose:Although Kinesio Taping has been extensively used, evidence about the effect of KinesioTaping is still insufficient. The aim is to determine the effect of Kinesio Taping on elbow joint torqueand muscle activity in time and frequency domains.Materials and Methods:Thirty-eight healthy subjects were (27 females and 11 males) randomly div-ided into control and Kinesio Taping groups. Kinesio Taping was applied over biceps brachii muscle inKinesio Taping group, whereas no taping was applied to control group. Maximum elbow joint torqueand electromyography activity in time and frequency domains were assessed during maximum isomet-ric contraction of biceps brachii muscle at baseline, after 10min, 30min, and 24h. Repeated measureANOVA and mixed ANOVA tests were used for in-group and between-group comparisons,respectively.Results:Elbow joint torques among four assessment sessions were statistically altered in KinesioTaping group and greater in Kinesio Taping group than in control group (F(3,57)¼3.317,p¼0.026,gp2¼0.149;F(3,108)¼3.325,p¼0.022,gp2¼0.085; respectively). No difference was found in timedomain muscle activity among assessment sessions in each group and comparison of groups(p>0.05). Low-gamma band activity was changed among assessment sessions in Kinesio Taping group(F(3,57)¼6.946,p<0.001,gp2¼0.268) while group time interaction was not determined.Conclusions:Kinesio Taping may influence joint torque of elbow more than without Kinesio Tapingcondition in 24th hour but the interpretation of this effect as a muscle strength enhancement com-pared with baseline can be arguable. Even if Kinesio Taping could not affect muscle activity in timedomain, low-gamma band activity which is closely related to somatosensorial input may reach highestmagnitude 24 h after Kinesio Taping.