Kinesio taping in patients with lateral epicondylitis

BACKGROUND: Lateral epicondylitis (LE) is a painful condition that affects the tendinous tissue of the lateral epicondyle of the humerus and leads to loss of function of the affected limb. Therefore it can have a major impact on the patient's social and personal life. Many treatments are recommended for lateral epicondylitis; unfortunately the evidence is limited. OBJECTIVES: The aim of study was to investigate the effect of kinesio taping (KT) on pain, grip strength and function in patients LE. METHODS: Thirty-one (23 females, 8 males) patients with LE were included. KT was applied twice a week for 2 weeks. Pain at rest, activity of daily living (ADL), night and palpation on lateral epicondyle was evaluated with the visual analog scale (VAS 0-10 cm), and the grip strength was measured with a hand held dynamometer. The stage of the disease was evaluated by the Nirschl score and the functional status was assessed with Patient-Rated Forearm Evaluation Questionnaire (PRTEQ) score. These parameters were evaluated before, at 2 weeks and 6 weeks after treatment. Patients' satisfaction was also recorded on a Likert scale after treatment at 2 weeks and 6 weeks. RESULTS: The average age of the patients was 43.58 +/- 9.02. The dominant limb was affected in 64.5% (20) of the patients. After the application of KT on lateral epicondyle, there was a significant improvement in all parameters in terms of pain, Nirschl score, hand grip strength, patient satisfaction, and PRTEQ scores at 2 and 6 weeks. CONCLUSIONS: Kinesio taping can be an effective treatment method in LE. This application improves pain, grip strength and functional status of the patients with LE.