Preface
An Illustrated Guide to Taping Techniques: Principles and Practice is appropriate for use as:
• A textbook for medical and manual therapy courses, including physiotherapy, osteopathy, chiropractics, and sports therapy
• A guide for emergency room staff
• A source of specific referenced material for any practitioner encountering patients who are employing the use of tape and for those practitioners who are applying tape.
Designed to accommodate the requirements of clinicians and their patients, this guide offers highly informative, clearly illustrated taping methods developed by persons actively involved in the care of patients, especially those in the athletic community where tape and supports are used on a regular basis. The authors’ collective experience involves multiple aspects of patient care including education and clinical application, as well as active involvement as support personnel at national level and international level sporting events.
An authoritative comprehensive guide, An Illustrated Guide to Taping Techniques: Principles and Practice will prove indispensable to students from a wide range of clinical backgrounds including medicine, physiotherapy, osteopathy, chiropractic, sports therapy, as well as to sports coaches, trainers, physical educators, managers, and the athlete and their family. Students will learn the scientific principles that direct the application of tape. It is recommended as a teaching manual, as well as a practical guide in hospital emergency rooms, doctors’ surgeries, sports injury clinics, physiotherapy centres, osteopathic and chiropractic clinics and on site at athletic events.
Essential to effective treatment and rehabilitation of injuries which need taping is an understanding of the type, mechanism and degree of injury, the tissues involved, the repair process as it applies to those tissues, the appropriate taping materials for the structure being dealt with, and the proper application of those materials. Taping should be used in conjunction with treatment and a comprehensive rehabilitation program that is aimed at reducing inflammation and pain, restoring range of motion, flexibility, strength, and proprioception. Referring to this guide, the practitioner will be able to address complex situations by using the appropriate, effective techniques for providing adequate compression, stability and support to the injured structure. Whether the desired effect is immediate return to activity or gradual rehabilitation, once the injury has been properly assessed and diagnosed, correct application of the specific taping technique to the injured area will ensure protection and allow functional mobility.
This guide has been divided into two sections. Sections cover taping supplies with a general description of their characteristics and uses; principles of taping including taping guidelines with a unique review system using the acronyms S.U.P.P.O.R.T. and P.R.E.C.A.U.T.I.O.N.; charts for sprains, strains and contusions using the mnemonic T.E.S.T.S., plus an overview of various types of tape strips.
The second section covers taping techniques for specific injuries. Clear step-by-step photographs and detailed instructions guide the taper. A list of supplies and positioning relative to each taping application is included, and a simple injury assessment and treatment chart follows each technique.
The guide is supplemented by a DVD containing some commonly used techniques and helpful tips.
Once the information in this package has been assimilated and techniques practiced and mastered, the practitioner will have an excellent base on which to build their taping repertoire. Those involved in taping regularly will, through experience, develop the ability to adapt the principles and techniques in this guide to a myriad of situations.