Isokinetic knee function in healthy subjects with and without Kinesio taping

Objective: This study examined the difference in the isokinetic knee performance in healthy subjects with and without the Kinesio tape application onto the skin surface overlying the vastus medialis. Design: A cross-sectional experimental study. Setting: Clinical setting. Participants: 30 healthy participants. Main outcome measures: Maximal concentric knee extension and flexion at three angular velocities (60, 120 and 180°/s) were measured with an isokinetic dynamometer. Normalized peak torque, normalized total work done and time to peak torque of knee extension and flexion were compared by repeated measures ANOVA. Results: There was no significant main effect in ANOVA in normalized peak torque and normalized total work done between taping conditions and angular velocities. Conversely, participants demonstrated significant shorter time to peak extension torque with the tape condition (p = 0.03). Pair-wise comparisons indicated that such time reduction (36-101 ms) occurred at all three angular velocities (p < 0.01). Conclusion: This investigation demonstrated the application of Kinesio tape did not alter the muscle peak torque generation and total work done but shortened the time to generate peak torque. This finding may contribute to the rationale in injury prevention and rehabilitation in athletes with Kinesio taping.