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Advances of ankle taping in sport

Abstract:

The purposes of this paper were to review the research on prophylactic ankle taping in sport, and to formulate hypotheses for future researches, on the basis of biomechanical trials on a force platform. There are four main topics on prophylactic ankle taping in the literature: the study of a possible performance decrease, the measurement of the limitation in the range of motion (ROM), the fatigue of the ankle taping, and finally, the reviews and researches that contribute with hypotheses for further works. Most studies have been carried out in static conditions to test the limitations in the ROM; however, there are few studies where the ankle taping response during sports tasks or specific movements had been analysed. Although the benefits of the use of ankle taping are well established, when it is misused, undesirable effects could appear. The subjects' dependence to these orthoses could lead to an injury, when they do not wear ankle taping during the sports activity. Finally, the review analyses basic sports movements: gait, running, changes of direction and landings. Data of these actions are presented, from the literature and pilot studies performed in our laboratory, where ground reaction forces with and without prophylactic ankle taping have been analysed. Further investigations should focus more in deep not only on the ankle taping effectiveness but on the decreases in the effectiveness of sports movements, and the increase in the risk of injuries.