Effect of Kinesio® Taping on Ankle Complex Motion and Stiffness and Jump Landing Time to Stabilization in Female Ballet Dancers.

Ankle sprain is the most commonly diagnosed injury experienced by ballet dancers with few studies investigating preventive support measures such as Kinesio taping. The need exists to examine the mechanical support characteristics of Kinesio taping and effect of application on ankle motion and performance. This may be important to understanding the mechanical mechanisms attributed to Kinesio ankle taping and justify its use in the prevention and treatment of jump landing injuries in ballet dancers. This study compared Kinesio taping with and without tension and no tape (control) on active and passive measures of ankle complex motion in healthy ballet dancers. A secondary objective was to examine the effect of Kinesio taping on balance using time to stabilization. Participants performed three ballet jumps with single-leg landings on a force plate across three ankle support conditions consisting of Kinesio taping, sham-Kinesio taping, and no tape. Sagittal and frontal plane motion and load-displacement of the ankle complex for each support condition were obtained using an ankle arthrometer. Kinesio taping with tension significantly restricted inversion-eversion rotation and increased inversion stiffness of the ankle complex (p < 0.05). No significant differences were found among the three ankle support conditions for jump landing time to stabilization (p > 0.05). Arthrometric results indicate Kinesio taping significantly restricted ankle complex motion in the frontal plane that is associated with lateral ankle sprain. Objective information on the nature of Kinesio taping support can assist sports medicine practitioners when recommending ankle support to athletes.

Joint stability characteristics of the ankle complex in female athletes with histories of lateral ankle sprain, part II: clinical experience using arthrometric measurement.

CONTEXT: This is part II of a 2-part series discussing stability characteristics of the ankle complex. In part I, we used a cadaver model to examine the effects of sectioning the lateral ankle ligaments on anterior and inversion motion and stiffness of the ankle complex. In part II, we wanted to build on and apply these findings to the clinical assessment of ankle-complex motion and stiffness in a group of athletes with a history of unilateral ankle sprain. OBJECTIVE: To examine ankle-complex motion and stiffness in a group of athletes with reported history of lateral ankle sprain. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: University research laboratory. PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS: Twenty-five female college athletes (age = 19.4 ± 1.4 years, height = 170.2 ± 7.4 cm, mass = 67.3 ± 10.0 kg) with histories of unilateral ankle sprain. INTERVENTION(S): All ankles underwent loading with an ankle arthrometer. Ankles were tested bilaterally. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): The dependent variables were anterior displacement, anterior end-range stiffness, inversion rotation, and inversion end-range stiffness. RESULTS: Anterior displacement of the ankle complex did not differ between the uninjured and sprained ankles (P = .37), whereas ankle-complex rotation was greater for the sprained ankles (P = .03). The sprained ankles had less anterior and inversion end-range stiffness than the uninjured ankles (P < .01). CONCLUSIONS: Changes in ankle-complex laxity and end-range stiffness were detected in ankles with histories of sprain. These results indicate the presence of altered mechanical characteristics in the soft tissues of the sprained ankles.

Joint stability characteristics of the ankle complex after lateral ligamentous injury, part I: a laboratory comparison using arthrometric measurement.

CONTEXT: The mechanical property of stiffness may be important to investigating how lateral ankle ligament injury affects the behavior of the viscoelastic properties of the ankle complex. A better understanding of injury effects on tissue elastic characteristics in relation to joint laxity could be obtained from cadaveric study. OBJECTIVE: To biomechanically determine the laxity and stiffness characteristics of the cadaver ankle complex before and after simulated injury to the anterior talofibular ligament (ATFL) and calcaneofibular ligament (CFL) during anterior drawer and inversion loading. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study. SETTING: University research laboratory. PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS: Seven fresh-frozen cadaver ankle specimens. INTERVENTION(S): All ankles underwent loading before and after simulated lateral ankle injury using an ankle arthrometer. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): The dependent variables were anterior displacement, anterior end-range stiffness, inversion rotation, and inversion end-range stiffness. RESULTS: Isolated ATFL and combined ATFL and CFL sectioning resulted in increased anterior displacement but not end-range stiffness when compared with the intact ankle. With inversion loading, combined ATFL and CFL sectioning resulted in increased range of motion and decreased end-range stiffness when compared with the intact and ATFL-sectioned ankles. CONCLUSIONS: The absence of change in anterior end-range stiffness between the intact and ligament-deficient ankles indicated bony and other soft tissues functioned to maintain stiffness after pathologic joint displacement, whereas inversion loading of the CFL-deficient ankle after pathologic joint displacement indicated the ankle complex was less stiff when supported only by the secondary joint structures.

Arthrometric measurement of ankle-complex motion: normative values.

CONTEXT: Valid and reliable measurements of ankle-complex motion have been reported using the Hollis Ankle Arthrometer. No published normative data of ankle-complex motion obtained from ankle arthrometry are available for use as a reference for clinical decision making. OBJECTIVE: To describe the distribution variables of ankle-complex motion in uninjured ankles and to establish normative reference values for use in research and to assist in clinical decision making. DESIGN: Descriptive laboratory study. SETTING: University research laboratory. PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS: Both ankles of 50 men and 50 women (age = 21.78 ± 2.0 years [range, 19-25 years]) were tested. INTERVENTION(S): Each ankle underwent anteroposterior (AP) and inversion-eversion (I-E) loading using an ankle arthrometer. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Recorded anterior, posterior, and total AP displacement (millimeters) at 125 N and inversion, eversion, and total I-E rotation (degrees) at 4 Nm. RESULTS: Women had greater ankle-complex motion for all variables except for posterior displacement. Total AP displacement of the ankle complex was 18.79 ± 4.1 mm for women and 16.70 ± 4.8 mm for men (U = 3742.5, P < .01). Total I-E rotation of the ankle complex was 42.10 degrees ± 9.0 degrees for women and 34.13 degrees ± 10.1 degrees for men (U = 2807, P < .001). All variables were normally distributed except for anterior displacement, inversion rotation, eversion rotation, and total I-E rotation in the women's ankles and eversion rotation in the men's ankles; these variables were skewed positively. CONCLUSIONS: Our study increases the available database on ankle-complex motion, and it forms the basis of norm-referenced clinical comparisons and the basis on which quantitative definitions of ankle pathologic conditions can be developed.

Assessment of Ankle-Subtalar-Joint-Complex Laxity Using an Instrumented Ankle Arthrometer: An Experimental Cadaveric Investigation.

OBJECTIVE: To show the relationship between direct measurements of tibial-calcaneal bone motion and instrumented measurements of ankle-subtalar-joint-complex laxity using a portable ankle arthrometer; to assess within and between-tester measurement reliability; and to determine if the ankle arthrometer can detect increased mechanical laxity of the ankle-subtalar-joint-complex after simulated injury of the lateral ankle ligaments. DESIGN AND SETTING: We used linear regression analysis to examine the relationship between direct measurements of tibial-calcaneal bone motion and instrumented measurements of ankle-subtalar-joint-complex laxity. An intraclass correlation coefficient (2,1) was calculated to determine intratester and intertester reliability for instrumented measurements of ankle-subtalar-joint-complex laxity. In addition, 2 separate, one-way, repeated-measures analyses of variance were used to compare instrumented measures of anteroposterior displacement and inversion-eversion rotation among the intact ankles after sectioning the anterior talofibular ligament and both the anterior talofibular and calcaneofibular ligaments. Data were collected in a biomechanics laboratory setting. SUBJECTS: Six fresh-frozen human-cadaver ankle specimens were studied. MEASUREMENTS: Testing involved the concurrent measurement of tibial-calcaneal bone motion and ankle-subtalar-joint-complex motion during the application of external loads. An instrumented ankle arthrometer was used to load the ankle in a controlled manner. Two spatial kinematic linkages measured the 3-dimensional motion of the calcaneus relative to the tibia and the motion of the arthrometer's footplate relative to the tibia. RESULTS: The correlation between tibial-calcaneal bone motion and instrumented measurement for anterior-posterior displacement was.878 (P =.0001). Its linear relationship with bone motion accounted for approximately 77% of the variance of the instrumented measurement. The correlation between tibial-calcaneal bone motion and instrumented measurement for inversion-eversion rotation was.858 (P =.0001), with approximately 74% of the variance of the instrumented measurement accounted for by its linear relationship with bone motion. High intratester and intertester reliability coefficients (ICC [2,1] =.80 to.97) were observed for instrumented measurements of ankle-subtalar-joint-complex laxity. In addition, ligamentous sectioning resulted in significantly increased ankle-subtalar-joint-complex laxity. When compared with the intact condition, sectioning both the anterior talofibular and calcaneofibular ligaments produced significant increases in anterior-posterior displacement (P =.0001) and inversion-eversion rotation (P =.002). CONCLUSIONS: We found a strong relationship between tibial-calcaneal bone motion and arthrometric measurements of ankle-subtalar-joint-complex laxity. The instrumented ankle arthrometer may be suitable as a diagnostic tool for the evaluation of lateral ankle-ligament laxity.