Healthcare Promote Sports Science Progress: The Effect of Kinesio

Taping on Athletic Performance in Elite Athletes

Sha Wang

,Gang Wang

, Qiang Guan

, Zhigang Liu

,Yanxia Zhao

and Chaoming Wu

1,* f

School of Physical Education, Xichang University, China

College of Physical Education, Chongqing University, China

Corresponding author:

chaomingwu0201@163.com

Keywords: Health Care, Kinesio Taping, Elite Athletes.

Abstract: Objective: To explore the potential mechanism and effect of kinesio taping on the improvement of sports

performance and performance of competitive athletes. Methods: The literatures were searched by PubMed,

Web of Science, Sport discuss and other databases. Results: 1. The elasticity of kinesio taping® educed the

relative area of skin folding, increased the subcutaneous space, and improved blood and lymphatic circulation.

2.The kinesio taping causes corresponding changes in proprioceptive perception by stimulating skin receptors

and mechanical receptors, correcting the errors that may occur in the process of exercise or correcting the

mode of action; 3. Kinesio taping® can significantly reduce the time of body fatigue recovery and increase

local blood flow. 4. The kinesio taping® plays a fixed and protective role in the joint, which reduces the risk

of joint injury and improves the balance ability of the body. Conclusion: Kinesio taping® positive role in

improving the sports performance of competitive athletes, but the related physiological.

1 INTRODUCTION

In recent years, cross-border cooperation between

sports and medicine and biotechnology has become

more frequent, and more and more research and

inventions are serving athletes to help them achieve

good results and improve their sports performance in

competition. Professional athletes use wearable

technology to track on-court performance and

monitor daily performance. In recent years, medical

technology has also played an important role in the

field of sports science, with the emergence of

intramuscular patches that have contributed to injury

prevention, post-performance recovery and improved

athletic performance.

Kinesio Taping® (K T) is an elastic patch that can

be used to treat sports injuries and some other

diseases, and is now widely used in the field of sports

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1053-8168

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4270-5327

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0751-7654

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1424-3874

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8970-2134

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7869-0898

medicine and rehabilitation medicine. In sports

practice, it is also used as a means to improve human

performance and athletic ability (Morris 2013). In the

last decade, the use of KT, including the application

of a specific type of elastic patch, has become an

increasingly popular alternative to traditional sports

patches. The potential mechanical and physiological

effects of intramuscular patches can prevent joint

injuries by improving sports performance in healthy

individuals and reduce disability in individuals with

joint disease by improving different physical

parameters (e.g., muscle strength, lymphatic return

and pain levels). In the field of sports science,

intramuscular patches are mainly used for injury

prevention and post-injury treatment in athletes, and

can also have a positive effect on athletic

performance and fatigue recovery, but there are still

relatively inconsistent studies on the specific

Wang, S., Wang, G., Guan, Q., Liu, Z., Zhao, Y. and Wu, C.

Healthcare Promote Sports Science Progress: The Effect of Kinesio Taping on Athletic Performance in Elite Athletes.

DOI: 10.5220/0011213400003438

In Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Health Big Data and Intelligent Healthcare (ICHIH 2022), pages 43-47

ISBN: 978-989-758-596-8

therapeutic effects and real value of intramuscular

patches. This review focuses on the research of

intramuscular patches on athletic performance of

athletes to provide a theoretical basis for further

research.

2 METHOD

Search formula: "Kinesio Taping" or "Kinesio Taping

Technology" or "Kinesio Tape" and "balance" or

"static balance" through PubMed, Web of Science,

Sport discuss and other databases. " or "Kinesio

Tape" and "balance" or "static balance" or "dynamic

balance" or "performance", "lower limb strength" or

"muscle strength" or "posture control" or "motor

control" as search terms for relevant The literature

search was conducted as a reference for relevant

studies.

3 RESULT

3.1 Origin of the Intramuscular Patch

Technique and Possible Potential

Mechanisms

The intramuscular patch technique was invented in

1973 by Dr. Kase, a Japanese massage therapist, and

is a medical treatment technique in which an

intramuscular patch is applied to the skin surface of

the human body according to certain technical

requirements, and its elasticity is retracted to exert its

effects.

Current research has shown that intramuscular

patches have both preventive and therapeutic effects.

It has been proposed as a therapeutic method to

reduce pain, correct joint position, reduce swelling,

increase proprioception, prevent injury, increase or

inhibit muscle recruitment and increase range of

motion (Rahlf 2019). Several studies have concluded

that this intramuscular effect patch can have a

positive effect on the prevention and treatment of

sports injuries because it has a better effect on the

recruitment of motor units. Due to the elasticity of the

tape, the relative area of skin folding is reduced and

the subcutaneous space is increased, thus allowing for

improved blood and lymphatic circulation. This

raised elasticity in turn activates neural inhibition,

increases joint range of motion, improves muscle and

fascia elasticity regulation and serves to reduce

injury(Chen 2013).

In addition, there are relatively few physiological

explanations behind the application of KT. Some

researchers have hypothesized that applying KT to

the starting to ending points of muscles can have a

stimulating and facilitating effect on muscle function

(Kase 2003). This suggests that this form of patching

can have a stimulating and activating effect on the

muscle due to the elasticity and other properties that

KT have. The elastic fibers of the intramuscular effect

patch can stimulate muscle contraction in the

direction of movement and improve motor

performance (Vithoulka 2010). In addition, KT can

improve proprioception and increase the recruitment

of motor units in the body (Supik 2007). Another

proposed hypothesis is that KT stimulate the fascia

and provide higher tension to the muscle, thus

promoting muscle contraction (Vithoulka 2010). If

the direction of muscle firing and the direction of

tension of the intramuscular effect patch are the same,

then tension can assist muscle contraction.

Conversely, if the direction of tension is opposite to

the direction of muscle contraction, the tension may

diminish muscle traction. During the application of

the intramuscular effect patch, skin receptors and

mechanoreceptors are stimulated, and this stimulation

leads to a corresponding improvement in

proprioception, correcting possible errors or

correcting movement patterns during exercise

(Magalhaes 2006)

3.2 Kinesio Tape Effect Patch Type

and Function

The main proprietary terms of the intramuscular patch

are the concepts of "anchor", "tail", extension

direction and contraction. The term "anchor" refers to

the starting point of the patch; "tail" refers to the end

of the patch that continues to extend outward away

from the stop point after the stop point has been

determined; extension direction: the direction in

which the tail end continues to extend after the anchor

of the patch has been fixed; retraction direction: the

direction in which the tail end continues to extend

after the anchor has been fixed with the tail facing the

anchor. Contraction force.

Clinically, the patch can be cut in various ways

such as I-shaped, Y-shaped, X-shaped, O-shaped,

claw-shaped (also called fan-shaped) and lantern-

shaped to fit the shape of the corresponding regional

muscle joint ((Rahlf 2019)) (see Figure 1, Table 1).

ICHIH 2022 - International Conference on Health Big Data and Intelligent Healthcare

Figure 1: Cutting effect of different shapes of KT.

Table 1: I Y X shapes and functions of KT.

Ligature shape Function

I shape Reduces/increases muscle tone and

improves athletic performance

Y shape

Supports, immobilizes and protects

soft tissues such as muscles and

ligaments

X shape Relieves pain at "anchor" points

Table 2: O Claw Lantern shapes and functions of KT.

Ligature shape Function

O shape

Immobilization and protection, mostly for

fractures and soft tissue in

uries

Claw shape

Promotes lymphatic circulation and

eliminates swellin

at the site of li

ation

Lantern shape For immobilization

3.3 Effect of Intramuscular Effect

Patch on Exercise Performance

3.3.1 Effect of Intramuscular Patches on

Muscle Strength

The effects of intramuscular patches on muscle

function are more likely to be on muscle strength, and

a study by Csapo R involving surface EMG

recordings showed that intramuscular patches may

stimulate greater levels of EMG in different muscle

groups, thus providing a relevant basis for

intramuscular activation of muscles (Csapo 2012). In

his study, Sun Zhang also found that intramuscular

patches did not immediately affect the force and

explosive power of isometric and isokinetic

contractions of the wrist extensors and flexors, but

still improved to some extent the fatigue of repetitive

work and the decay of torque in the wrist flexors,

which may have a positive effect on muscle fatigue

induced by prolonged work (Nunes 2015).

Muscle activity of the anterior tibialis and

posterior tibialis muscles can reveal a dynamic

stabilizing effect on the foot arch during weight-

bearing activities. In athletes with low arches, it was

found that the EMG signals in all phases of the tibialis

anterior muscle were generally higher in the group

with and without the intramuscular patch than in the

group without the intramuscular patch, but not all

EMG signals were statistically significant (Siu 2019).

This may be because the purpose of the intramuscular

effect patch is to promote the contraction of the

posterior tibial muscle and also the contraction of the

anterior tibial muscle. To some extent, intramuscular

effect patching of the wrist flexors may improve

climbing ability and rock-hugging performance in

rock climbers. This is because climbing ability

performance is largely dependent on the strength and

endurance of the finger flexors. There is also evidence

that intramuscular effect patching on the finger

flexors reduces muscle fatigue during repetitive and

prolonged grip tasks and that intramuscular effect

patching of the finger flexors leads to an increase in

parameters related to muscular endurance and athletic

climbing performance (España 2009, Williams

2012).

Healthcare Promote Sports Science Progress: The Effect of Kinesio Taping on Athletic Performance in Elite Athletes

3.3.2 Effects of Intramuscular Patches on

Fatigue and Blood Flow

Centrifugal and isometric exercise can cause muscle

damage and pain, and the extent of delayed muscle

soreness can be effectively alleviated through the use

of KT. By comparing the biochemical index test

analysis of rowers in the patching and non-patching

groups, Zhou Zhenghong et al. found that

intramuscular effect patching had positive effects in

improving muscle fatigue and eliminating serum

creatine kinase in athletes' muscles, and the effects of

longer patching were more pronounced (Tekin 2018).

In a comparative test of KT in aerobic athletes, it was

found that intramuscular effect patch intervention

reduced creatine kinase concentrations in athletes

during different periods of delayed muscle soreness,

indicating that KT reduce microdamage in athletes'

skeletal muscles (Rahlf 2019).

Intramuscular patches were superior to other

methods and techniques in improving local blood

circulation in the knee during the 7-day application

period after total knee arthroplasty (Windisch 2017).

Aguilar-Ferrandiz et al. reported that the use of

intramuscular patches for one month significantly

improved venous reperfusion time and venous pump

function in postmenopausal women with chronic

venous insufficiency by comparison with the use of

placebo patches (Aguilar 2014). Souza et al. found

that delayed muscle soreness contributed to a

reduction in vascular diameter and impaired blood

flow response at the corresponding site in the body,

promoting nociceptive hyperalgesia. In addition, the

"fold hypothesis" of the intramuscular patch explains

to some extent the findings of this study, as the fold

lifts the skin of the local tissues to which it is attached,

and the tissue gap under it increases, which increases

the blood and lymphatic circulation to the local

tissues (creatine kinase in the tissue fluid enters the

body circulation more quickly with the lymphatic

circulation, increasing the rate of metabolism in the

body). metabolic rate) is accelerated, allowing more

anti-inflammatory factors to penetrate the lesion to

accelerate the inflammatory response. In contrast,

Yang and Lee reported no increase in local blood

circulation in the lower back over 15 minutes in a

non-disabled group with KT (Yang 2018). These

contradictory results may be due to differences in the

application period and population characteristics of

these studies. KT may be beneficial in populations

with muscle fatigue and chronic musculoskeletal

disorders, as the increased circulation helps to

promote recovery through increased nutrient and

metabolic waste exchange.

However, Stedge et al. evaluated the effect of

intramuscular patches on blood circulation and found

no effect of intramuscular patches on blood

circulation capacity by measuring blood flow. In

addition to this, no evidence-based studies have been

reported to confirm the effect of intramuscular

patches on aerobic exercise capacity.

Figure2: Potential mechanisms inherent in KT (Nicole,2020).

3.3.3 Effect of Intramuscular Effect Patch

on Balance

The intramuscular effect patch technique includes the

facilitation and inhibition of fascial correction and the

correction of bone and joint function. In particular,

intramuscular patches have been shown to prevent

injury by providing sensory stimulation to control

proper movement and prevent excessive stretching of

tissues or joints beyond normal range of motion

（ROM）.

Intramuscular patches can improve postural

control by increasing sensory input, thereby reducing

delay in postural reflexes. Intramuscular patches have

a significant beneficial effect on dynamic and static

balance, but no significant effect on flexibility. As an

external support, intramuscular patches remain one of

the most popular clinical treatment strategies, and the

ICHIH 2022 - International Conference on Health Big Data and Intelligent Healthcare

available literature suggests that intramuscular

patches not only reduce the risk of recurrent ankle

sprains, but also improve patients' sensorimotor

function because they increase joint stability and are

protective by limiting ligaments for a short period of

time.A study by Cortesi et al. found that that

intramuscular patches may have a beneficial effect on

balance in patients with multiple sclerosis. The

anterior-posterior displacement towards the center of

pressure was reduced by applying the intramuscular

effect patch to the patient's Achilles tendon. The

intramuscular patch may have a more significant

effect on non-athletes with weaker balance and

strength or at least on athletes who do not train

regularly (Cortesi 2011). Future studies should focus

on the effects of the tape on the sensorimotor system

by detecting electromyographic activity, motion

analysis or fatigue, and postural control.

4 CONCLUSIONS

Intramuscular patches can indeed contribute to

athletic improvement by immobilizing joints,

increasing muscle tone and local blood flow

circulation, and improving balance. However, further

research is needed on the physiological mechanisms

associated with the effects of intramuscular patches

on athletic performance. The improvement of balance

and postural control is also worth further exploration

and research, which will help to support and improve

the new techniques and methods of sports

performance.

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Healthcare Promote Sports Science Progress: The Effect of Kinesio Taping on Athletic Performance in Elite Athletes