USAGE OF KINESIOLOGY TAPE IN THE MANAGEMENT OF PATELLOFEMORAL PAIN SYNDROME: A SURVEY AMONG PHYSIOTHERAPIST IN KARACHI

Abstract

Patellofemoral pain syndrome frequently occurs as an anterior knee pain in large population in Asia. Effective intervention is required to treat it timely however as shown in evidence kinesiology tape is effective treatment internationally but it’s applicability in Pakistan is not known. The objective of the study was to evaluate the use of kinesiology tape in the management of patellofemoral pain syndrome in Karachi Pakistan.A cross sectional survey was conducted at multi centers of Karachi using non probability purposive sampling technique. To gather data on demographic variables self-administrated questionnaire was used. All categorical variables were presented through frequencies and percentages. Application of Chi-square test was taken into the account to catch out association between use of kinesiology tape in PFPS and other categorical variables. The results show that (43.75%) of the participants use kinesiology tape in the management of patellofemoral pain syndrome. And 66 out of 70 (94.2%) participants stated that it is effective in the management of patellofemoral pain syndrome. The result of this study suggests that though the knowledge of effectiveness of usage of k tape in patellofemoral pain syndrome is high among the physical therapists, its application is not very common due to lack of skills, its unavailability and the cost. Key Words: Kinesiology Tape, Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome, Physical Therapist.