Date of Award

2002

Document Type

Scholarly Project

Degree Name

Master of Physical Therapy (MPT)

Department

Physical Therapy

First Advisor

Thomas Mohr

Keywords

Hip; Joint Instability; Knee; Movement; Muscles

Abstract

Background and Purpose: It has been hypothesized that patellofemoral pain may be precipitated by weak hip abductor musculature that does not pull the pelvis and femurs into correct alignment during gait activities. The misalignment at the pelvis leads to misalignment down the kinetic chain, eventually affecting the knees. It is theorized that hip taping may aid in supporting the pelvis, thus reducing the EMG activity of the hip abductors and normalizing the alignment of the knees. The purpose of this study is to describe muscle activity and joint motion during a step-down test in subjects with and without the hip tape in place.

Methods: Twenty healthy subjects (9 men, 11 women) with no history of hip or knee pathology performed a step-down test with and without hip tape in place. The EMG activity of the gluteus medius and the tensor fascia lata was recorded via surface electrodes while tibio-femoral joint valgus angles were measured using video-analysis. Data was analyzed using a paired samples t-test.

Results: There was no significant difference in EMG activity of the gluteus medius for males (p=.603), females (p=.2S6), or males and females together (p=.840). There was also no significant difference in the EMG activity of the tensor fascia lata for males (p=.221), females (p=.876), or males and females together (p=.239). There was no significant difference in hip adduction values between taped and non-taped males (p=.060). There were, however, significant differences in hip adduction values between taped and non-taped females (p=.OOO) and taped and non-taped males and females together (p=.OOO).

Conclusion: Hip taping may reduce the amount of hip adduction in patients and allow for a more efficient action at the patella, thus reducing anterior knee pain in patients. More studies, employing larger sample sizes, are needed to support the efficacy of hip taping in decreasing anterior knee pain.

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