(CNN) -- Beach volleyball players, particularly Olympians, are known all around the world for their incredible skill with the ball. They've also been known for wearing those skimpy uniforms.

Now, something that's covering their skin is getting a lot of attention.

It's called kinesio tape. The tape has been around for decades, but during the London 2012 Olympics, it has been spotted stretching and spiraling in interesting patterns on some athletes.

U.S. silver medalist Trey Hardee had big black pieces snaking up his legs in the decathlon. German beach volleyball star Katrin Holtwick wore bright blue bits of it running up and down her six-pack abs. Even ping-pong players were reportedly wearing it.

With its Olympic popularity, athletic trainers say you can bet you will see a lot more of the tape at your local gym or on the playing field this year.

Paul Ullucci Jr., a Rhode Island athletic trainer who is on the board of the National Athletic Trainers Association, says he received a call Friday from a patient about the tape.  See the full story http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/10/health/olympics-kinesio-tape/index.html

Kinesio Tape

About KTAI

 

     The Kinesio Taping® Association International (KTAI) is a community of therapists and other healthcare practitioners who are trained in the most up-to-date techniques and advancements of the Kinesio Taping® Method (KTM). As knowledgeable professionals, KTAI members have always been an integral part of the KTM strategy, and are responsible for the astounding worldwide growth in KTM usage, techniques and methodology.

     During the late 1970s, when Dr. Kenzo Kase was developing the KTM, his research sparked interest throughout the health care community.  It wasn’t long before he was asked to share his findings and to provide information so other practitioners could extend the benefits to their own patients. From the very beginning, Dr. Kase grasped the importance of having a community of practitioners and instructors to share their progress and provide a standard for the use of the newly-developing KTM.

     In order to facilitate the sharing of research and development of applications, the first Kinesio Taping® Association was formally constituted in Japan starting in 1984. This gave practitioners a convenient way to share results and ideas, in addition to the symposiums.

Today KTAI encompasses members from seven regions of Japan and more than thirty countries worldwide. With more than 10,000 members worldwide, including 5,000 in the United States, the KTAI community continues to grow, bringing healing knowledge and a high level of expertise to patients and clients throughout the world.

Exciting Upcoming Research

This year I am initiating a collaborative research project with my coworker Cheryl Meyer COTA.  We are looking into the effects of using kinesio tape to improve the oral motor control in our special education population.  The students we have chosen have difficulty with drooling and controlling their lip closure.  We will try different taping techniques and collect data to have objective measurements of the benefits of the tape.  

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