Effects of kinesiotape versus soft brace on selected parameters in patients with knee osteoarthritis

Abstract

Introduction: Knee osteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic condition that results in pain, muscular fatigue, functional instability, and disability. Bracing and taping can be a suitable treatment for knee OA, hence the aim of this study was to compare the effects of a soft knee brace and kinesiotaping (KT) on gait and balance parameters in patients with knee OA. Material and methods: Twenty-three patients with knee OA, grade I or II were evaluated. Gait parameters were measured using the motion analysis system including gait velocity and stance time (of the affected limb). Balance parameters including Overall Stability Index (OSI) and Medial-Lateral Stability Index variables were assessed using the Biodex stability system. Patients were assessed in three situations: without a knee soft brace or KT, with a soft brace, and with KT. The time interval was one week between each measurement. A paired t-test was used to compare patients in the three conditions.Results: There were statistically significant differences in all gait and balance parameters except for the OSI after using kinesiotaping (p < 0.05) but not after bracing. There were clinical improvements in all outcomes after taping more significant than after a soft knee brace.Conclusions: Kinesiotaping is more effective than the soft knee brace for gait and balance improvement in patients with knee OA.

The Overload knee joint pain in horse riding athletes

“…Spinal dysfunctions in professional riders have been extensively documented in the literature 4,5,10,11,12 , whereas insufficient research has so far been done on the causes of knee joint pain. The knee joint is one of the largest and most complex joints in the human body, making it often difficult to pinpoint the specific cause of pain experienced by a patient 13,14 . Common sources of damage and pain in the knee joints include cartilage damage 15 , which leads to advanced degenerative disease 16 repetitive patellar dislocations causing pain known as Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome (PFPS), abnormal patellar mechanics, hypertrophy of Hoffa's fat pad, tendinopathy, synovial bursitis [17][18][19][20][21] .…”