About Kinesio Tape

By Bryan Baisinger

Figure 1 Intermittant Glue Bands.	Figure 2 Medial Gastroc muscle strain and contraction.
Figure 3A Lymphatic Correction of sprained and swollen ankle (outside).	Figure 3B Lymphatic Correction sprained and swollen ankle (inside).
Figure 3C Fascial Correction for contracted quadracep with swollen ankle.	Figure 4 Multi-Split Fascial Correction for side ache.
Figure 5A Fascial Correction for shoulder pain - Trapezius.	Figure 5B Fascial Correction for shoulder pain - deltoid and pectoralis.

Dr. Kenzo Kase in Japan developed Kinesio tape approximately 35 years ago. It became much more popular throughout the world particularly for sports medicine after the 2008 Beijing Olympics. When athletes including USA volleyball player Terry Walsh and other athletes were seen wearing the Kinesio tape during competition, approximately 300,000 hits to the Kinesio tape website occurred within one hour and over a million hits within 24 hours. Prior to exposure during the 2008 Olympics, approximately 25% Kinesio tape applications were used for sports medicine with the other 75% used primarily for pediatric and geriatric health conditions.

Kinesio tape is very different then the traditional white athletic tape. Athletic tape has a continuous layer of glue on flexible backing, which does not stretch when applied to the skin. It is used primarily for the single purpose to support regions of the body by limiting and restricting motion. It is usually worn for hours up to one or two days then removed. In a competitive sports event setting, an athlete may be taped up before playing and re-taped at halftime.

Kinesio tape on the other hand, has multiple purposes for its application to address conditions such as muscle pain, muscle inhibition, muscle contracture, joint hypermobility, joint hypomobility and regional swelling. In the Kinesio tape practitioner’s mind, when addressing an issue of a condition such as swelling many factors are considered prior to applying the Kinesio tape. What was the cause of the swelling? Is this an acute or chronic condition? Is the tissue swollen from impact, too much motion, overuse, gravity or not enough motion? What other areas of the body rely on the correct functions of the region that is swollen and do they need to be also addressed as well?

The practitioner using Kinesio tape will assess someone’s condition and determine the best application for correction using different tension, widths, lengths and patterns. The tension applied determines whether the muscle is stimulated or relaxed. When tape is wider it generates more stimulation to the nervous system. The length is chosen for what areas combined for treatment and the pattern chosen determines what kind of correction is desired. The six correction techniques are for mechanical effects, fascia release, space tissue lifting, ligament/tendon pressure, functional mechanoreceptor activation and lymphatic flow support.

Figure 1 shows wavelike intermittent glue bars unique to Kinesio tape on a 2” wide band. The glue is a medical grade acrylic adhesive and the backing is a flexible cotton material. Once applied when touched the tape feels like a thin soft cotton T-shirt resting on the skin. “How long should I keep this on?” is an important question asked by people having the tape applied. Most of the time the tape is left on three to five days, which brings up the next question. “Can I shower with it on?” Fortunately, the answer is yes. Kinesio tape does not come off in water or when soapy water runs over it.

Although most applications of Kinesio tape include multiple sites in order to correct the primary area of concern they also include any areas that are affected by it. A very simple single application for a strained medial gastroc muscle is shown in figure 2.

Spraining an ankle is a very common injury that occurs for walkers. Application of Kinesio tape can help in addition to RICE; rest, ice, compression and elevation. One of the complications with a sprained ankle is the loss of tissue integrity and ability for the injured area to clear excess fluids moving back toward heart through the lymphatic system. The figure 3A and 3B shows a fan cut lymphatic correction for a sprained ankle with each two inch band cut into four fingers and applied in a basket weave like formation around the calf and foot. Figure 3C demonstrates a split cut fascial correction applied to quadriceps muscle to relax it after it has becomes contracted in response to pain associated with the ankle sprain. As an ankle injury is healing and walking is appropriate this basket weave pattern aids in decreasing swelling within the ankle. During rehabilitation this pattern can also be left in place with additional ankle stabilizing support placed over it.

Another condition common for walkers is a side ache pain that can occur in the lateral stomach wall during exercise. The cause of a side ache pain is often unknown and most of time is not dangerous, but annoying. Figure 4 demonstrates a multi-split fascial correction band placed on the side and front where side ache pain is felt.

For fast walkers and race walkers shoulder pain may occur, figure 5A and figure 5B show a Kinesio tape application for the trapezius, deltoid, and pectoralis muscle groups. Since the tape does not restrict movement this application reduces pain and allows balanced function for the shoulders region and no need to slow down activity.

Dr. Bryan Baisinger is a sports medicine chiropractor and certified in Kinesio Tape Method. Baisinger is a Portland State University Athletics Department sports medicine team physician and the owner of Clearwater Clinic, Portland, OR. He can be contacted at 503-279-0205 and bryanb@clearh2o.org visit www.clearh2o.org for more information.