Introduction
Preventive strategies for athletes with a history of ankle injuries often include multiple approaches to minimize the injury and re-injury risk. These strategies usually are based on the use of insoles or footwear designed to improve the lower limb and foot biomechanics, educational programs to raise injury awareness, proprioceptive training focused on enhancing motor control of the ankle and foot and the application of functional taping during sports activities to improve joint stability ( Kerkhoffs et al., 2001 ; Janssen et al., 2017 ).

Functional ankle taping is frequently employed by athletes and medical staff as a preventive method against injuries. Several studies have assessed the biomechanical effects of ankle taping, particularly its capacity for limiting the joint movement, and have often compared it to orthopedic devices. While several authors report similar efficiency to the movement limitation between the two approaches, while other authors defend a greater limitation for the orthopedic devices, leading to improve injury prevention outcomes ( Kemler et al., 2011 ). The widespread use of ankle taping is attributed to its comfort, quick application and perceived increase in joint stability, factors that contribute to the acceptance of this method in athletic environments ( Cooke et al., 2009 ; Kemler et al., 2011 ).

Currently, it exists a generalized acceptance of the use of preventive ankle taping due to the the high prevalence of lateral ankle sprain (LAS), accounting for 80% of all ankle injuries ( Woods et al., 2003 ). In this line, 70% of LAS patients have been reported to experiment recurrent injuries, leading to the development of chronic ankle instability (CAI) ( Anandacoomarasamy & Barnsley, 2005 ). Residual symptoms are frequent for months or even years following LAS.

Several studies emphasized the importance of appropriate rehabilitation programs after a LAS episode to warrant proper healing context for the injured ligaments, allowing them to endure the tensile forces generated during ankle movements ( Denegar & Miller, 2002 ). There is ongoing debate about the timeframe for achieving mechanical stability after an ankle injury, with some studies recommending a recovery period of at least 6 weeks to 3 months before returning to sports. However, instability may persist for up to a year following LAS ( Tohyama et al., 2003 ; Hubbard & Hicks-Little, 2008 ).

The biomechanical assessment of ankle and foot pressures and load distributions using pressure platforms has emerged as a highly reliable and non-invasive method, employed in research and clinical practice settings. This technology is particularly useful due to their reproductible data which are essential for evaluating biomechanical interventions, such as preventive ankle taping and their effects on foot function and injury or re-injury risk. As a result, pressure platform analysis has become an indispensable tool for both diagnosis and managing conditions related with foot and ankle biomechanics, while also provides data for the development of targeted rehabilitation strategies and preventive programs ( Cuevas-Martínez et al., 2023 ).

While some evidence suggests that the protective impact of ankle taping is particularly pronounced in individuals with a history of LAS, the actual benefits of such taping in preventing initial injuries or enhancing ankle dorsiflexion, stability, and balance remain unknown. Additionally, recent research indicates that ankle taping may inadvertently increase the risk of knee and ankle injuries due to altered lower limb biomechanics ( Romero-Morales et al., 2023 ; Romero-Morales et al., 2020 ; Romero-Morales et al., 2023 ). These findings challenge the effectiveness of ankle taping for injury prevention in healthy populations and call for a critical reassessment of its utility, especially in healthy athletes without prior ankle injuries. Because the use of prophylactic taping is a fairly extended practice in sports even though its effectiveness has not been proven for healthy populations or athletes that had not have a previous LAS history ( Handoll et al., 2011 ), nor has it the mechanisms of why it might be effective as a preventive measure for LAS the present study aims to explore the acute effects of preventive ankle taping on plantar pressure distribution and balance in healthy individuals without previous injuries. the Authors hypothesize that taping alters dynamic and static conditions, potentially shifting the load distribution and balance within the foot, which may influence the risk of injuryost of the reviewed literature focuses on specific populations, such as athletes or sports people recovering from injuries, who may already present biomechanical alterations. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study to analyze the biomechanical impact of taping on both dynamic balance and plantar pressures under static and dynamic conditions in a healthy population.