The Immediate Effects of Inhibitive Gastrocnemius Kinesio Taping on Static and Functional Balance Performance in Subjects With Chronic Stroke Disorders

Purpose: Stroke is one of leading causes of neuromuscular disorders that affects the patients&rsquo; abilities during standing and walking. Various treatments have been used to restore and improve patients&rsquo; stability and reduce falling risks. This study aimed to assess the effect of Kinesio taping on dynamic balance and spasticity in subjects with stroke disorder. Methods: This project was single blind randomized controlled trial. A total of 22 stroke patients (11 patients were diagnosed with right-sided and 11 patients with left-sided hemiplegia) were recruited in this study. Both groups received Kinesio taping intervention. Kinesio Tex Tape was directly applied to the skin of calf muscles and kept there for 1 hour. Time up and go (TUG) test was used to assess dynamic postural control and modified modified Ashworth Scale to evaluate the degree of spasticity of plantar flexor muscles. The subjects&rsquo; static stability was evaluated based on sways of centre of pressure (CoP) on a force plate. The statistical analysis was done by performing repeated measure of analysis of variance with Minitab software (v. 17). Results: There was a statistically significant reduction of the spasticity and Time up and go test scores in the pre-taped, taped and retest conditions (P<0.05). There was a significant difference between two groups with regard to TUG test scores (P=0.013), but not spasticity scores (P=0.301). No differences were observed in CoP excursions between the test conditions for both left and right sides (P=0.415). Conclusion: These results suggest that ankle taping is useful in immediate stabilization of body posture and reduction of spasticity. Also the results of this study showed that subjects with left-sided hemiplegia have relevant balance disorders and taping better improve dynamic postural control in these patients.