Duration of strength retention of ankle taping during activities of daily living.
OBJECTIVE
Taping has been used for the prevention and treatment of ankle injuries. The change in tape strength has not been specifically quantified during activities of daily living (ADL) by any investigation so far. Therefore the primary aim of this study was to investigate the change in ankle tape strength over a 24-h period, while subjects performed their ADL.


METHODS
Twenty-four healthy subjects (mean age: 24.3+/-7.4) participated in this study.


METHODS
Ankle taping was applied to all subjects for a 24-h period. Outcome measures were recorded at six different time intervals and are as follows: before and immediately after taping, 15, 30, 60 min, and 24h post taping. Strength of tape was quantified as the moment required to rotate the foot passively into inversion, measured using a handheld dynamometer. The range of motion (ROM) was also measured using a goniometer. The muscle activity of the ankle evertors were monitored while recording the outcome measures to ensure that the passive rotation of the ankle into inversion by the investigator was not impeded by their contraction.


RESULTS
A significant change in the moment required to rotate the foot into inversion and ROM was found between all time intervals tested (p<0.001). There was a 58% reduction in MOM and a 155% increase in ROM after 24h.


CONCLUSIONS
This study has quantified for the first time the reduction in the support provided by ankle taping while subjects performed their ADL. This can assist clinicians on deciding the frequency of tape reapplication that may required to provide adequate support to the ankle.
Fleet
K
K
Divison of Physiotherapy Education, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK.
Galen
S
S
Moore
C
C
D000203:Activities of Daily Living; D000328:Adult; D016512:Ankle Injuries / Q000517:prevention & control*; D000843:Ankle Joint / Q000502:physiology*; D055052:Athletic Tape / Q000592:standards*; D004867:Equipment Design; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008422:Materials Testing; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular / Q000502:physiology*; D016474:Weight-Bearing / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult