The efficacy of Kinesio taping against therapeutic ultrasound for pain relief in individuals suffering from Medial tibial stress syndrome

Abstract

Medial tibial stress syndrome is an extremely common overuse injury, characterised by repetitive excessive loading of the tibia. This results in exertional pain along the posteromedial border of the bone shaft, which is relieved by rest. The aim of this PICO study is to determine whether Kinesio taping is more effective than ultrasound therapy for pain relief in individuals suffering from medial tibial stress syndrome. The population being studied entails of individuals suffering from Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome. The intervention is Kinesio taping, which is being compared to therapeutic ultrasound, for the outcome of pain relief. The inclusion criteria allowed participants of any gender and profession, both local and international papers as well as studies with a minimum of 10 subjects. The exclusion criteria omitted people older than 75 years of age, studies unavailable in English and papers published before the year 2000. Following a critical appraisal of the literature using the CASP tool, two randomised controlled trials and a prospective case-control study were selected to form part of this review. The findings suggest that Kinesio tape is not a more effective modality than ultrasound therapy, for pain relief in individuals suffering from medial tibial stress syndrome. However the answer to the research question is inconclusive. Consequently, larger scale studies in this field of clinical research are required in the future, to corroborate the findings from the present study. This knowledge can be disseminated and incorporated into educational workshops at health care centres, empowering physiotherapists to provide evidence based practice to their clients.