Gary B. Wilkerson, EdD, ATC

The effectiveness of ankle taping has been controversial, with various studies indicating that support from taping decreases as the activity progresses. A method of taping, called the subtalar sling, was compared to the standard basket-weave method of taping on 30 athletes (college football players). For each athlete, one ankle was taped with the standard method, the other using the subtalar sling. To avoid any dominance issues, the right ankle was taped with the modified method for half the subjects, the left for the other half. The ankles were shaved, aerosol adhesive was used, lubricated pads placed at heel and forefoot, and a minimum of underwrap used. One practice session lasting 2-3 hours was used as the activity. ROM for simple plantar flexion, supination, complex plantar flexion, and inversion were measured for untaped ankles, post-tape application, and post-exercise. For pre-exercise condition, there was no significant difference between the two taping methods for simple and complex plantarflexion. The modified method, however, displayed significantly more restriction for supination and inversion, prior to exercise, than the standard method. Post-exercise ROM testing indicates the subtalar sling significantly improved ROM restrictions than the standard taping method.

COMMENTS
I tried this taping technique on local high school football players a few years ago at camp, and they all loved it.  They felt it restricted motion and lasted longer than the standard taping technique.  The following pictures show the technique:  First, apply anchors, stirrups as on the first picture.  Next, using semi-elastic tape, such as Elaskon, fashion the subtalar sling by starting the tape at the metatarsal heads, wrapping it around the shaft of the fifth metatarsal, passover the central portion of the fibular malleolus, around the posterior portion of the leg, and end on the anterolateral aspect of the leg.  Finish up with your heel lock and circumferencial strips.
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