A comparison of the effects of ankle taping styles on biomechanics during ankle inversion

This study was designed to compare the effects of different ankle taping methods on lower leg EMG and subtalar kinematics.

Twelve healthy volunteers were tested on an inversion platform in one of three taping conditions: non-elastic basketweave, elastic adhesive bandage wrap and non-taped control. Muscle activation and range of motion data were collected during an inversion of 35 degrees using a Biometrics(®) datalogger. Testing was done before and after 30minutes of treadmill running.

Significant differences were noted in total inversion, time to peak inversion and rate of inversion. While total inversion did not differ between tape conditions, the rate of inversion in the non-elastic condition was lower than the elastic adhesive condition, which was lower than the control. There was no effect of ankle taping style on latency of the peroneus longus.

The choice of ankle taping style can have significant effects on ankle biomechanics and the use of non-elastic tape reduces the rate of inversion. While the rate increased after 30minutes of running, it was still lower than the other conditions.