Neck pain is a very common complaint, and estimates are that it will affect up to 60% of people at some point in their lifetime. A systematic review was recently conducted to look at the effect of kinesiology tape on neck pain. The review looked at 10 Randomised Controlled Trials that had been completed on neck pain with a total of 620 patients. The primary outcome of the included trials was a VAS rating scale for pain and a secondary outcome of the Neck Disability Index (NDI) patient reported outcome measure. All of the included ten studies scored more than seven on the PEDro scale indicating high methodological quality.
The review found that the KT groups had statistically significant reductions in their pain scores compared with the control groups. Further subgroup analysis showed that this was particularly the case for non-specific neck pain and mechanical neck pain. Subgroup analysis also showed that a four-week KT intervention was effective at improving pain scores, whilst the one-week KT intervention was not.
Eight out of 10 studies also included the secondary outcome of the NDI, and the authors found a statistically significant improvement in the kinesiology tape group. Once again, on subgroup analysis, they found that it was most effective for non-specific neck pain and more effective over a four-week period. Interventions of one week or less were ineffective in terms of the NDI which would really be expected as typically outcome measures are not administered that soon after the initial completion. Interestingly, they also found that when compared to a sham KT application, there was no significant reduction in NDI.
The study concludes that KT applications can significantly improve neck pain and neck disorders particularly for non-specific neck pain and mechanical neck pain, with more pronounced effects over a four-week intervention period. Clinically, kinesiology tape may provide an effective, non-pharmacological adjunctive treatment for patients suffering from neck pain.
Hu, Q., Liu, Y., Yin, S., Zou, H., Shi, H. & Zhu, F. (2024). Effects of Kinesio Taping on Neck Pain: A Meta‑Analysis and Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials. Pain and Therapy 13, 1031–1046