Ankle Taping and Functional Ankle Instability

Background and purpose: Ankle inversion sprains are the commonest injuries of the lower extremities. Taping is routinely used after ankle sprain to support the joint and prevent reinjury. The effect of taping on functional performance in participants after ankle sprain has received little attention and generally with inconsistent findings. Besides, the perception of confidence and reassurance that may come with the ankle being taped might lead to the improvement of functional mobility performance. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of rigid ankle tape and fibular tape on functional performance, self-efficacy and perceived stability, confidence and reassurance during functional tasks in participants with functional ankle instability. Methods: This study is a randomized controlled trial. Forty subjects with functional ankle instability will be recruited and randomly assigned into the rigid tape group and the fibular tape group. Participants will perform functional mobility tests with and without the ankle taped. The functional tests are: figure-8 hopping test, lateral hopping test, star excursion balance test (SEBT), single-leg stance and stair decent test. Secondary outcome measures were self-efficacy and perception measure. Statistics: Two-way analysis of variance with repeated measures was used to determine the effects of intervention on each dependent variable. Model effects were group, time (pre, post), and their interaction. Post hoc pairwise comparisons between pre and post in each group, and independent t test between groups, were used to document the difference. The statistical significance was set at p less than 0.05.