Effect of Kinesio Taping Applied to the Suprahyoid Muscles on Swallowing Safety in Patients With Post-Stroke Dysphagia (Post-Stroke KT)

November 20, 2025 updated by: Omer Faruk Yasaroglu, Harran University

Investigation of the Effects of Suprahyoid Kinesio Taping on Swallowing Safety and Hyolaryngeal Elevation in Patients With Post-Stroke Dysphagia

Dysphagia is defined as a disorder that occurs during the process of food transfer, beginning with oral intake and continuing until it reaches the stomach. The incidence of post-stroke dysphagia has been reported to range between 42% and 75%. Dysphagia can lead to aspiration pneumonia due to food entering the lungs, as well as malnutrition, dehydration, and even death. In patients with inadequate swallowing safety and efficiency, compensatory maneuvers such as chin tuck, head flexion, supraglottic swallowing, and the Mendelsohn maneuver are commonly used. These maneuvers aim to maintain oral intake by narrowing the laryngeal vestibule or increasing hyolaryngeal elevation. They are evaluated during videofluoroscopic swallowing studies and recommended to patients if they are found to prevent aspiration or penetration.

Kinesio taping (KT) has been reported to stimulate cutaneous receptors, increase sensory input, and facilitate neural reflexes, thereby promoting the activation of a greater number of motor units during maximal muscle contraction. In recent years, it has also begun to be used in the field of dysphagia rehabilitation. Studies conducted in stroke patients have shown that KT applied to the infrahyoid muscles provides resistance to the suprahyoid muscles and enhances their strength. A kinematic analysis study in stroke patients reported that KT applied to include the suprahyoid muscles increased vertical hyoid movement, although it did not result in a significant improvement in swallowing safety. The study, however, did not specify the detailed taping method used. Since the suprahyoid muscles are primarily responsible for hyolaryngeal elevation, KT focusing on this region has the potential to serve as a compensatory maneuver in dysphagia management.

Study Overview

Status

Status

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Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

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Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

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Study Type

Study Type

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Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

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25

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

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Study Contact

Study Contact

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Study Locations

  • Turkey (Türkiye)
      • Sanliurfa, Turkey (Türkiye)
        • Recruiting
        • Harran University, Faculty of Health Sciences, Department of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation
        • Contact:

Participation Criteria

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Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

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Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Diagnosis of stroke
  • Age over 18 years
  • Presence of swallowing disorder symptoms
  • Willingness to participate in the study

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Presence of neurological diseases other than stroke
  • Presence of tracheostomy
  • Open wounds on the skin in the submental region

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Kinesio Taping Group
Participants with post-stroke dysphagia will receive Kinesio Taping applied to the suprahyoid muscle region. Swallowing safety and kinematic parameters will be evaluated before and after the intervention.
Other: Kinesio Taping
Kinesio tape will be applied over the suprahyoid region to facilitate muscle activation.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in Swallowing Safety (Penetration-Aspiration Scale Score)
Time Frame: Immediately before and immediately after Kinesio taping application.
Swallowing safety will be evaluated using the Penetration-Aspiration Scale (PAS) during videofluoroscopic swallowing study (VFSS). Each swallow will be scored on an 8-point scale, with higher scores indicating a higher risk of airway invasion. The difference in PAS scores before and immediately after Kinesio taping will be analyzed to assess the acute effect of the intervention on swallowing safety.
Immediately before and immediately after Kinesio taping application.

Collaborators and Investigators

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Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Harran University

Study record dates

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Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
April 1, 2025

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
April 1, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
October 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
November 20, 2025

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
November 20, 2025

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
December 1, 2025

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
December 1, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
November 20, 2025

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
November 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • HRÜ/24.14.41

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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