Paper tape applied before the race to a runner's own blister-prone spots cut blisters by 40% in multistage desert ultras
Yet 83% of runners still blistered somewhere
Key Findings
Paper tape reduced blisters by 40% (95% CI 28–52, P < 0.01) on taped areas compared with untaped areas of the same foot; number needed to treat 1.31.
128 runners in the 2014 RacingThePlanet 250-km, six-stage desert ultramarathons; tape went on the areas each runner named as blister-prone.
106 runners (83%) developed 117 blisters; the most common sites were the toes (50%) and the heel (23%).
80% of blisters had appeared by the end of stage 2.
Practical Application
For a runner who blisters, tape the known hot spots with paper (surgical) tape before the start — not after the first rub. Most blisters arrive early.
Say it as "may help, costs nothing to try in training first", not as protection: four in five runners still blistered somewhere.
Toes and heel are where to look first.
Limitations
Not blinded; the comparison is untaped skin on the same foot; desert stage racing with packs.
An earlier trial by the same group that taped the whole foot found no protective effect (Lipman 2014, DOI 10.1016/j.wem.2014.06.013: 52% vs 39%, P = .22; 90 analysed) — the benefit belongs to targeted taping.
Abstract only was read.