A Review of the Therapeutic and Protective Effects of Kinesio Taping and Foot Orthosis in Patients With Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome

Numerous treatment modalities have been suggested for patients with medial tibial stress syndrome (MTSS), but the effectiveness of these interventions is still unknown. Therefore, this study aimed to provide a systematic review of the therapeutic efficacy of kinesio taping (KT) and foot orthosis for patients with MTSS.

The related articles were searched using selected keywords in Embase, Scopus, Medline, SPORTDiscus, Web of Science, Biomed Central, and PubMed databases from inception to May 2021. After deleting duplicate and unrelated articles, the full text of 9 articles was received from the databases. 

According to the inclusion and exclusion criteria, only 9 articles were eligible for the present review study, of which 5 articles examined the effectiveness of KT and 4 articles the effectiveness of plantar orthosis for people with MTSS. Previous studies showed that using anti-pronation KT can help reduce peak plantar pressure and pain and improve the function of patients with MTSS. Additionally, using the arch support foot orthosis can help correct the pressure distribution pattern under the foot and reduce the foot contact time, resulting in faster pain relief and the physical limitations caused by the MTSS. Kinesio taping, Foot orthosis, Medial tibial stress syndrome, Shin splintBased on the review articles, results indicate that both therapeutic interventions can be used to correct the pressure distribution pattern under the foot, reduce the pain and eliminate physical limitations caused by injuries in individuals with MTSS.