Sawkins Kate, Refshauge Kathryn, Kilbreath Sharon, Raymond Jacqui
School of Physiotherapy, The University of Sydney, Australia.
Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2007 May;39(5):781-7. doi: 10.1249/MSS.0b013e3180337371.
Recurrence of ankle sprains is common among athletes. Although ankle taping reduces the risk of injury, the mechanism underlying its effectiveness remains unclear. Anecdotal reports suggest a role of the belief among athletes that taping will protect them from injury. That is, taping may have a placebo effect. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether there was a placebo effect with ankle taping in individuals with ankle instability.
Thirty participants with ankle instability completed a hopping test and a modified star excursion balance test under three conditions: (i) real tape, (ii) placebo tape, and (iii) control (no tape). Participants were blinded to the purpose of the study and were informed that the study aimed to compare two methods of ankle taping referred to as mechanical (real) and proprioceptive (placebo). The order of testing the three conditions and the two functional tests was randomized.
There was no significant difference in performance among the three conditions for the hopping test (P = 0.865) or the modified star excursion balance test (P = 0.491). However, a secondary exploratory analysis revealed that participants' perceptions of stability, confidence, and reassurance increased with both real and placebo ankle taping when performing the functional tasks.
The role of the placebo effect of ankle taping in individuals with ankle instability remains unclear. Clinicians should, therefore, continue to use ankle-taping techniques of known efficacy. They should, however, focus on maximizing patients' beliefs in the efficacy of ankle taping, because its application reassured participants and improved their perceived stability and confidence. The effect of ankle taping on participants' perceptions may contribute to its effectiveness in preventing injury.
踝关节扭伤在运动员中复发很常见。尽管踝关节贴扎可降低受伤风险，但其有效性背后的机制仍不清楚。轶事报道表明，运动员认为贴扎能保护他们免受伤害，即贴扎可能有安慰剂效应。本研究的目的是确定踝关节贴扎对踝关节不稳定个体是否存在安慰剂效应。
30名踝关节不稳定的参与者在三种情况下完成了跳跃测试和改良的星状偏移平衡测试：（i）真贴扎，（ii）安慰剂贴扎，（iii）对照（不贴扎）。参与者对研究目的不知情，并被告知该研究旨在比较两种踝关节贴扎方法，即机械性（真）贴扎和本体感觉性（安慰剂）贴扎。测试三种情况和两项功能测试的顺序是随机的。
在跳跃测试（P = 0.865）或改良的星状偏移平衡测试（P = 0.491）中，三种情况下的表现没有显著差异。然而，一项二次探索性分析显示，在执行功能任务时，真贴扎和安慰剂贴扎都使参与者对稳定性、信心和安心感的认知有所增加。
踝关节贴扎对踝关节不稳定个体的安慰剂效应作用仍不清楚。因此，临床医生应继续使用已知疗效的踝关节贴扎技术。然而，他们应专注于最大限度地增强患者对踝关节贴扎疗效的信念，因为贴扎的应用让参与者安心，并改善了他们的感知稳定性和信心。踝关节贴扎对参与者认知的影响可能有助于其预防损伤的有效性。
