International Journal of Human Movement and Sports Sciences 9(6): 1157-1173, 2021 http://www.hrpub.org
DOI: 10.13189/saj.2021.090611
The Effect of Tissue Flossing Technique on Sports and
Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation: A Systematic
Review of Recent Research
Gao Jianhong
1
, Chee Chen Soon
1,*
, Thung Jin Seng
2
, Zeinab Zaremohzzabieh
1
,
Shamsulariffin Samsudin
1
1
Faculty of Educational Studies, University Putra Malaysia, Serdang, 43400, Selangor, Malaysia
2
National Sports Institute of Malaysia, Kompleks Sukan Negara, Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Received July 28, 2021; Revised September 6, 2021; Accepted October 6, 2021
Cite This Paper in the following Citation Styles
(a): [1] Gao Jianhong, Chee Chen Soon, Thung Jin Seng, Zeinab Zaremohzzabieh, Shamsulariffin Samsudin , "The
Effect of Tissue Flossing Technique on Sports and Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation: A Systematic Review of Recent
Research," International Journal of Human Movement and Sports Sciences, Vol. 9, No. 6, pp. 1157 - 1173, 2021. DOI:
10.13189/saj.2021.090611.
(b): Gao Jianhong, Chee Chen Soon, Thung Jin Seng, Zeinab Zaremohzzabieh, Shamsulariffin Samsudin (2021). The
Effect of Tissue Flossing Technique on Sports and Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation: A Systematic Review of Recent
Research. International Journal of Human Movement and Sports Sciences, 9(6), 1157 - 1173. DOI:
10.13189/saj.2021.090611.
Copyright©2021 by authors, all rights reserved. Authors agree that this article remains permanently open access under
the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 International License
Abstract Flossband, as a novel and effective tissue
flossing technique, is becoming increasingly popular in the
field of athletic training, sports injury prevention, and
rehabilitation. The purpose of this literature review is to
summarize updated evidence about the effects of flossband
application on joint range of motion (ROM), pain, muscle
tightness, strength, and physical functional performance as
well as identify research gaps for future study. Google
Scholar, PubMed, EBSCO, and Web of Science were used
to search related articles. The keywords of floss bands,
flossbands, floss band, tissue flossing, flossing band,
voodoo floss band, voodoo floss bands, track floss, rock
floss, life floss band, and Rogue voodoo floss were used
to extract target articles. English journal articles, full-text
available, and content related to outcome measures were
included. Conference abstracts, books, case studies,
guideline reviews were omitted. 23 full-text journal articles
were included for further qualitative analysis after
removing duplicates and deleting articles that violate the
screening criterion. Flossband application on limbs, soft
tissue, or joints with about 50% flossing tension or 150
mmHg wrapping pressure could have small to medium
effects on the parameters of ROM, muscle stiffness, muscle
strength, and physical function performance, and large
effects on pain management. Most previous studies were
mainly focused on the acute effect of flossband application
on peripheral joints or soft tissues in healthy and active
participants or well-trained athletes. Therefore, for future
studies, more evidence is needed on the benefits of
long-term flossband trunk application and concerning
patients with various diseases.
Keywords Flossband, Pain Management, Range of
Motion, Tightness, Strength, Physical Function
Performance, Fascial Release
1. Introduction
High-energy sports are prone to sports injuries as a
result of tissues being overused during intense sports
activities. Repeated exposure to the high mechanical
stresses associated with sporting activities promotes
abnormal postural adjustments and myofascial injuries [1].
Inflammatory reactions to tissue injury can change the
structure of myofascial tissues, thus causing discomfort
and hypersensitivity, and reducing an athlete‟s range of
motion (ROM), strength and performance [2]. Many
therapeutic strategies have been used to prevent and cure