Kinesiotaping Applied to the Thumb in Rheumatoid Hand

Objective: It was aimed to evaluate the acute effect of Kinesiotape taping on pain, function, range of motion and grip strength parameters in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and hand involvement. Material and Methods: A total of 34 patients, 27 women and 7 men, diagnosed with RA according to the American Rheumatism Association (ACR) criteria were included in our study. All patients were divided into two groups as Kinesiotape and Control groups, each consisting of 17 patients. Subjective pain intensity was evaluated with the Visual Analog Scale, range of motion was evaluated with a goniometer, functional evaluation was evaluated with the Grip Skill Test, hand grip strength was evaluated with a dynamometer, and finger grip strength was evaluated with a pinchmeter. Evaluation parameters were evaluated before and 1 hour after the application, and the acute effect was examined. The patients in the kinesiotape group were taped with the mechanical correction method and the patients in the Control group were taped with tensionless gluing of the I tape. Applications were made on both dominant and nondominant hands.