Athletic Taping: It Can Help Keep You Together

Athletic taping can be used to prevent injury and to help patients return to sport, work, or play, with less pain!

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 In terms of prevention, tape can help to increase a person’s proprioception – which is the awareness of one’s body or joint in space. Applying tape to the skin can increase blood flow and stimulate mechanoreceptors (sensors in the skin that detect touch, vibration, pressure, or change in muscle length).

Taping can also be used post-injury to provide support to a muscle or joint. There are a variety of tapes available on the market. The type of tape is selected based on the patient’s needs and the activity to which they are returning.

One of the most commonly used taping procedures at Willow Grove and Hatboro Physical Therapy is the Patellofemoral or McConnell Taping. This taping is helpful for patients with Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome (PFPS), which is pain in the front or along the side of the knee as a result of overuse or abnormal movement of the knee cap (patella).  People with PSFS most commonly experience pain while running, jumping, squatting, or sitting for prolonged periods of time. The McConnell Taping is used to reduce pain and to improve knee mobility, by gliding the patella medially (toward the inner thigh).

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Taping of the shoulder, for instability and/or scapular dyskinesia (abnormal motion of the shoulder blade), and foot/ankle (sprains and strains) are also common practices at Willow Grove and Hatboro Physical Therapy.

If you are experiencing pain, taping may be a non-invasive way to alleviate pain and to improve mobility quickly! Please contact WG/Hatboro PT for further information.

Dana Winkler, PT, DPT, ATC