Chinese Journal of Tissue Engineering Research ›› 2023, Vol. 27 ›› Issue (14): 2214-2221.doi: 10.12307/2023.160

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Kinesiology tape for treating shoulder pain

Liu Kun1, Yin Lulu2, Ma Zheng1, Huang Lihua1, Zhu Ran1, Fang Ping1, Zhang Ye1, Ma Yanhong1   

  1. 1Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People’s Hospital, Shanghai 200233, China; 2Rehabilitation Center, the First Affiliated Hospital of Henan University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhengzhou 450000, Henan Province, China
  • Received:2022-04-25 Accepted:2022-06-25 Online:2023-05-18 Published:2022-09-30
  • Contact: Ma Yanhong, Master, Chief physician, Professor, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People’s Hospital, Shanghai 200233, China
  • About author:Liu Kun, Master, Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People’s Hospital, Shanghai 200233, China
  • Supported by:
    Advanced Appropriate Technology Promotion Project of Shanghai Municipal Health Commission, No. 2019SY013 (to MYH); Hospital-level Project of Shanghai Jiao Tong University Affiliated Sixth People’s Hospital, No. ynhg202016 (to LK)

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Shoulder injury is always accompanied with shoulder pain, which affects patient’s athletic performance. Kinesiology tape has been widely used in the prevention and treatment of shoulder diseases. However, there is limited research on the effect of kinesiology tape on shoulder pain and the results are controversial.
OBJECTIVE: To describe the advances in clinical research of kinesiology tape on shoulder pain, providing a theoretical reference basis for the practical application of kinesiology tape.
METHODS: Literature retrieval was performed to search for studies on kinesiology tape for treating shoulder pain in the Web of Science, PubMed, Cochrane, CNKI, WanFang, and VIP databases up to June 2022. Keywords were “shoulder pain; shoulder” AND “kinesio tap; kinesiology tap; kinaesthetic tap; tape; taping; taped” in English and Chinese.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Mechanical correction of kinesiology tape has certain effects on fatigue and pain relief, posture correction, increasing joint range of motion and acromion humeral distance, which is beneficial to improve upper limb function and locomotor performance. However, kinesiology tape has limited effects on joint proprioception and motion pattern after muscle fatigue. The long-term efficacy of kinesiology taping for shoulder pain is yet unclear. Further studies should be conducted on the effect of different tape tensions combined with different taping methods of kinesiology tape, to find new ways to keep it working. 

Key words: kinesiology tape, shoulder pain, shoulder disease, sports injury, pain, mode of action, locomotor performance, review

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