Kinesio Taping Effects on Knee Extension Force Among Soccer Players

Kinesio Taping (KT) is used often, but there is little scientific information on its effect. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of KT on knee extension force among soccer players. KT (K-Tape®) and Micropore (3M®) were applied on the right and left thighs of 34 professional soccer players (20 males and 14 females). Half of the participants had KT applied to the left and half to the right thigh. The subjects performed two maximal isometric voluntary contractions of the quadriceps pre, immediately post, and 24 hours after tape application. Isometric knee extension force was measured using a load cell and the following variables were assessed: peak force, time to peak force, rate of force development until peak force, time to peak rate of force development and 200 ms pulse. There were no statistically significant differences between KT and Micropore conditions or among testing sections (pre, post, and 24h after). Therefore, taping (independently of the type of tape used or time since application) did not affect the force-related measures assessed during maximal isometric voluntary knee extension trials performed by healthy professional athletes.