Comparison of the effects of Kinesio tape and high-intensity laser therapy applied in conjunction with physical therapy on pain, grip strength, and functional level in patients with lateral epicondylitis: A randomized controlled trial.

Abstract

Previous studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of various conventional treatments for lateral epicondylitis, but it is still unclear which treatment is most effective. To compare the effects of Kinesio tape (KT) and high-intensity laser therapy (HILT), applied in conjunction with physical therapy (PT), on pain, hand grip strength, functional status, and pain sensitivity in chronic lateral epicondylitis. Randomized controlled trial. Tertiary hospital physical medicine and rehabilitation clinic. Patients with chronic lateral epicondylitis. A total of 53 patients with chronic lateral epicondylitis were included in this randomized controlled study and were randomly assigned into three groups: PT-only group (n = 17), HILT group (n = 18), and KT group (n = 18). The PT-only group received PT; the KT group received PT and KT; and the HILT group received PT and HILT. The treatment period was 2 weeks, with five sessions per week. The Visual Analog Scale (VAS), hand grip strength, Patient-Rated Tennis Elbow Evaluation (PRTEE), and pain sensitivity were assessed before treatment, at the end of treatment (week 2), and at week 6. Treatment effects were analyzed using a mixed-design analysis of variance. A statistically significant interaction between group and time was found for VAS and PRTEE scores (p < .001). The main effects of time revealed statistically significant differences in the mean values of VAS and PRTEE (p < .001). In all groups, VAS and PRTEE measurements at weeks 2 and 6 showed statistically and clinically significant improvements compared to pretreatment values. A statistically significant difference between week 2 and week 6 was found only in the HILT group (p = .024 and p < .001, respectively). There was no statistically significant interaction between group and time for hand grip strength and pain sensitivity. HILT with PT resulted in better outcomes in terms of pain and function compared to PT alone and PT combined with KT.