Positive Health Online

Abstract

BAGHERI and COLLEAGUES, School of Medicine, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran, Department of Physiotherapy, School of Rehabilitation Sciences, Iran University of Medical Sciences and Health Services, Tehran, Iran, conducted a study to evaluate the effects of kinesiology tape, anaesthesia, and kinesiology tape along with anaesthesia, on motor neuron excitability.

Background

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of kinesiology tape, anaesthesia, and kinesiology tape along with anaesthesia, on motor neuron excitability.

Methodology

Participants: Participants included 20 healthy men aged 20–35 years, who were examined over 5 sessions. Intervention: The five experimental sessions included: control without applying the kinesiology tape or Eutectic Mixture of Local Anesthetics (EMLA); treatment only with EMLA; only kinesiology tape application; only sham tape application; and treatment with kinesiology tape and EMLA. Main outcome measures: The H-reflex recruitment curve of the soleus and lateral gastrocnemius was recorded by a blinded assessor in the 5 separate sessions randomly assigned with 48 h washout periods. The major H-reflex parameters include: the Hmax/Mmax ratio, the H-reflex threshold stimulation intensity (Hth), the intensity of maximum H-reflex (IntensityHmax), the H-reflex ascending slope (Hslp), and the H-reflex ascending slope fixed into the first three points (first Hslp).

Results

The H-reflex parameters (H slope, first Hslp, Hth, and IntensityHmax) were facilitated by application of the kinesiology tape with and without EMLA; however, EMLA inhibited the H-reflex parameters (Hmax/Mmax ratio, Hslp, first Hslp, and Hth) in both the soleus and lateral gastrocnemius. The sham tape did not alter the H-reflex recruitment curve parameters. The statistical model revealed a significant difference between the kinesiology tape and the sham tape and control sessions, between kinesiology tape - EMLA and EMLA, and between kinesiology tape - EMLA and control session.

Conclusion

Results suggest that the kinesiology tape facilitates the muscle activity and the underlying mechanism on the gastro soleus motor neuron pool involves the cutaneous receptors.

References

Rasool Bagheri, Mohammad Reza Pourahmadi, , Ali Reza Sarmadi, , Ismail Ebrahimi Takamjani, Giti Torkaman,  Sayyed Hamed Fazeli. What is the effect and mechanism of kinesiology tape on muscle activity? Journal of Bodywork & Movement Therapies  22 (2): 266–275. April 2018.  DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbmt.2017.06.018