Soft Tissue Injuries and Sports Strapping
- 1 May 2010
Knees are susceptible to injury and knowing how to properly strap a knee injury is important during the recovery phase. Exercise and massage therapist Anthony Fong outlines the correct technique to strap a knee.
When the knee is flexed and a force hits the outside of the knee, a medial collateral ligament injury may occur. This is common in contact sports such as rugby league and soccer.
Strapping procedure:
- Apply anchor strips of tape above and below the knee joint, leaving a gap of 3cm at the back of each anchor.
- Form a cross with strips of tape running over the medial side of the knee and connecting to the anchor strips.
- A vertical strip can be applied from the top anchor, through the cross to the bottom anchor.
- Final anchor strips can be placed over the initial anchors above and below the knee to secure the cross and vertical strips.
Mr Fong says, while strapping can support ligament, muscle and joint movement, a flexibility and strength programme should be followed to provide full recovery from a knee injury.