Dynamic Tapes Eco Features
- Originally developed for athletes, sports and musculoskeletal physiotherapy, it is increasingly becoming an essential tool for therapists of all disciplines proving popular with neurological, pediatric and hand therapists
- The tape is applied in a way that allows the elastic energy to decelerate motion and absorb load (eccentric), store energy once deceleration is complete and then re-inject it back into the system as shortening commences (concentric) in much the same way as a bungee cord.
- Can assist weak, injured or overloaded muscles or can be used to modify movement patterns to indirectly reduce loading or improve technique
- Designed to stretch in all direction (4-way stretch)
- Can stretch to over 200% of its resting length with no restrictive end point
- Available in 2" (5cm) and 3" (7.5cm)
- Color: Black/Grey
- 16.4" (5m) in length
More About Dynamic Tapes
Why is it called Biomechanical Tape?
- Dynamic Taping is about managing load, managing movement patterns, and managing function by introducing force into the system and based on sound clinical reasoning
- Biomechanics is defined as the study of the mechanical laws relating to the movement or structure of living organisms. Dynamic Tape is an externally applied load absorbing product that affects the work of muscles and motion of joints
- As mentioned, kinesiology tapes are designed to lift the skin to create space in order to take pressure off pain-sensitive structures, increase circulation, or to affect muscle activity via the input into the nervous system through the skin.
- Dynamic Tape doesn't fit that category but it does fit with the concepts of Biomechanics. In fact, Dynamic Taping has more in common with traditional, rigid athletic tapes, Mulligan and McConnell taping than it does with kinesiology taping.
How does Dynamic Taping Work?
Mechanical Mechanism
- A focus on movement, function, and load allows us to get effective results. Dynamic Tape has been specifically developed to provide strong mechanical assistance externally to
- Reduce the work on injured tissues
- Assist weak muscles
- Improve movement patterns
- Augment stability via force closure mechanism
- Change position to improve the muscle's capacity to generate force (length-tension relationship or modifying lever arms)
Physiological Mechanism
These include direct effects on the pain, circulatory, proprioceptive, and motor control systems. While this is not the primary aim of Dynamic Taping, positive effects are often observed and ongoing research will provide an improved understanding of these processes. A number of mechanisms may be involved including
- Non-opioid mediated analgesia a sympathoexcitatory effect is often observed and may be suggestive of a non-opioid mediated analgesia similar to that seen with some manual therapy techniques (e.g. as demonstrated in studies on Mulligan lateral glide of the elbow or Elvey lateral glide of the cervical spine with subjects with tennis elbow)
- A reduction in pressure pain thresholds and improvement in circulation by manually gathering all of the soft tissue together and holding it there with the recoil of the Dynamic Tape. This creates a soft, spongy area which reduces pressure on irritated structures and decreases firing of sensitised peripheral nociceptors.
- Normal afferent input may have a modulating effect on the pain experience. Due to its constant but variable stimulation to the skin, approximation of the joints and varying stretch on the muscle (occurs as the tape is placed on the body with the muscle in a short position and with tension on the tape such that when the muscle is lengthened, the tape tightens significantly, compressing the tissues) a lot of mechanical stimulation occurs.
- This compression (or reduction of compression in offloading techniques) may also have an effect on the motor control system via altered input from golgi tendon organs or muscle spindles with changes in muscle activation being demonstrated in emerging research on Dynamic Taping.
- Beliefs, expectations, past experience and many other factors have a profound effect on the pain experience. A reduction in the perception of threat may result in a lessening of the pain experience. Dynamic Taping may be used to challenge faulty beliefs about movement and tissue damage or pain.
- Similarly, sensory signalling from the periphery is also heavily involved in the pain experience. A reduction in load or firing of sensitised structures (not necessarily damaged) will also effect the pain experience.
- Improvements in circulation the mechanism is not well understood but research is demonstrating a reduction in tissue stiffness when all the soft tissues are gathered up manually and held in place by tape. This may then result in more patent small vessels which can remove fluid more readily