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Kinesio Tape Therapy


      Kinesio Tape Therapy

Clinical Massage Therapy Austin

The Kinesio Taping Method is designed to facilitate the body’s natural healing process while allowing support and stability to muscles and joints without restricting the body’s range of motion. It is used to successfully treat a variety of orthopedic, neuromuscular, neurological and medical conditions. Both Kinesio® Tex Tape and the training protocol have shown results that would have been unheard of using older methods and materials.

Trigger Point Therapy

Kinesio Tape works by pulling the upper layers of skin, creating more space between the dermis or skin and the muscle. The space created is believed to relieve pressure on the lymph channels in the area between the muscle and the dermis or skin, creating more space for lymph flow and thus better lymph drainage through an affected area. This space also houses various nerve receptors that send specific information to the brain. When the space between the epidermis and the muscle is compressed, such as during an injury, these nerve receptors are compressed and send information to the brain regarding continuous touch, light touch, cold, pain, pressure, and heat. This information causes the brain to send out certain signals to the body on how to react to particular stimuli. Kinesio Tape alters the information that these receptors send to the brain and causes a less reactive response in the body, allowing the body to work in a more normal manner and removing some of the roadblocks that normally slow down the healing process.

Kinesio Tape Application

Kinesio Tape also is felt to affect deeper tissues in the body. Increased space theoretically allows muscles greater contractility, which in turn pushes more fluid through the muscle, resulting in better muscle performance. The end results are believed to be reduced muscle fatigue, increase in range of motion, and better quality of muscle contraction.
 
Kinesio Tex Tape is used to improve joint alignment by affecting the muscles and fascia and can reduce poor function of a joint by influencing opposing muscle groups and joint mobility.

Fascia and lymph have an intimate relationship with each other. fascia is a connective tissue that surrounds muscles, groups of muscles, blood vessels, and nerves, binding those structures together in much the same manner as plastic wrap can be used to hold the contents of sandwiches together.  It consists of several layers: a superficial fascia, a deep fascia, and a subserous (or visceral) fascia and extends uninterrupted from the head to the tip of the toes.  Lymph is considered a part of the interstitial fluid, the fluid which lies in the interstices of all body tissues.  Interstitial fluid becomes lymph when it enters a lymph capillary. The lymph then travels to at least one lymph node before emptying ultimately into the right or the left subclavian vein, where it mixes back with blood.  Lymph returns protein and excess interstitial fluid to the circulation. Lymph picks up bacteria and brings them to lymph nodes to be destroyed. Lymph channels pass though fascia between the bone and the muscle and superficially between the skin and the muscle. Lymph ducts range in size from smaller than a hair to 2 cm lymph nodes. Major lymph channels can be found in the groin, neck, and armpits. When the flow of lymph is restricted or increased, an accumulation of fluid occurs behind the congested area, resulting in swelling that decreases space between the muscle and skin, causing the body to react to a painful stimulus.

 

    Kinesio Tape Shoulder Application

 

The working model gives rise to the basic theoretical concepts of the Kinesio Taping Method. There are six basic concepts of the Kinesio Taping technique called corrections. They are: mechanical, fascia (fascial), space, ligament/tendon, functional, and circulatory/ lymphatic. Mechanical corrections are used for improved stability and biomechanics. Fascia or fascial corrections create or direct movement of fascia. Space corrections are used for decreasing pressure over a target tissue. Tendon/ligament corrections decrease stress on a ligament or tendon. Functional corrections provide sensory stimulation to either assist or limit a motion. Circulatory/lymphatic corrections help move lymphatic fluid from more congested to less congested areas.
 
Kinesio Taping has also been shown to affect scars. Reductions of adhesions and pitting, softening, flattening, improved pliability, and reduction of contractures have been seen in some clients.