Effectiveness of Kinesio Taping after Open Appendectomy in Children

To evaluate the effectiveness of kinesio tape (KT) in reducing pain and fear, and in facilitating earlier gas passage in children after open appendicectomy.

A single-blind randomised controlled trial. Place and Duration of the Study: Department of Paediatric Surgery, Konya City Hospital, Konya, Turkiye, from January to April 2024.

In this study, 68 children aged 6-12 years were assigned to either a KT group (n = 34), which received KT with routine analgesia, or a control group (n = 34), which received standard analgesia alone. KT was applied to the lumbosacral and lower abdominal regions using the star- and I-shaped techniques. Pain and fear were measured using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and the Children's Fear Scale (CFS) before the intervention and after the first passage of gas. Statistical analysis included the Shapiro-Wilk test for normality, independent t-tests and the chi-squared tests for between-group comparisons, and paired t-tests for within-group comparisons.

Both groups showed significant reductions in pain and fear; the KT group demonstrated greater decreases (VAS: p <0.001, d = 1.92; CFS: p <0.001, d = 1.49). Time to first gas passage was significantly shorter in the KT group (p = 0.017).

KT may be an effective non-pharmacological method for reducing pain and fear, as well as for accelerating bowel recovery in paediatric patients undergoing appendicectomy.

Abdomen, Acute, Appendicitis, Athletic tape, Open abdomen techniques, Pain management.