Short-Term Effect of Kinesiotaping on Chronic Nonspecific Low Back Pain and Disability: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials

Abstract

Background: Low back pain (LBP) is a very common and disabling disorder in modern society. The intervention strategies for LBP include drug therapy, surgery, and physical interventions. Recently, kinesiotaping, as a simple and noninvasive treatment, has been used to treat chronic nonspecific LBP, but its effectiveness and true merit remains unclear.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to summarize the results of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on the effectiveness of kinesiotaping (KT) for chronic nonspecific low back pain (CNLBP) and disability.

Data sources: Medline, Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, Web of Science, and EmBase were searched from inception to September 1, 2018.

Study selection: Studies were included in the review if they met the following criteria: RCTs published in English; patients (>18 years old) diagnosed with CNLBP (pain duration of > 12 weeks), with or without leg pain; KT as a single treatment or as a part of other forms of physical therapy; outcomes measured included pain intensity and disability.

Data extraction: Three independent investigators completed data extraction. Methodological quality was appraised using the Cochrane tool for assessing the risk of bias. The GRADE (Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation) guidelines were applied to assess the confidence of the effect estimates.

Data synthesis: Eleven RCT studies involving 785 patients were retained for the meta-analysis.Standardized mean differences (SMDs) with 95% CIs were calculated using a random-effects model. Compared with the control group， the pooled SMD of pain intensity was significantly reduced (SMD = -0.73; 95% CI = -1.12 to -0.35; GRADE: low) and disability was improved (SMD = -0.51; 95% CI = -0.85 to -0.17; GRADE: low) in the KT group. Subgroup analyses showed that, compared with the control, the I strip of KT significantly reduced pain (SMD = -0.48; GRADE: low) but not disability (SMD = -0.26; GRADE: low). Compared with sham/placebo tape, KT provided significant pain reduction (SMD = -0.84; GRADE: low) and disability improvement (SMD = -0.56; GRADE: low). Moreover, compared with the no-tape group, the KT group also showed pain reduction (SMD = -0.74; GRADE: low) and disability improvement (SMD = -0.65; GRADE: low).

Limitations: Limitations of the review included a lack of homogeneity, different methodologies and treatment duration of KT application, and relatively small sample sizes.

Conclusions: There is low-quality evidence that KT has a beneficial role in pain reduction and disability improvement for patients with CNLBP. More high-quality studies are required to confirm the effects of KT on CNLBP.