Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation

Understanding Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation

To become board-certified in physical medicine and rehabilitation, PM&R physicians (sometimes referred to as 'physiatrists', which is pronounced ''fizz ee at' trists'') are required to pass both a written and oral examination administered by the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (ABPM&R), after completing 4 years of medical school and 4 years of an accredited residency program.

PM&R physicians treat acute and chronic pain and musculoskeletal disorders. PM&R physicians focus on restoring function. They may see a person who lifts a heavy object at work and experiences back pain, a basketball player who sprains an ankle and needs rehabilitation to play again, or a computer programmer who has carpal tunnel syndrome. PM&R physicians' patients include people with arthritis, tendonitis, any kind of back pain, and work- or sports-related injuries.

PM&R physicians also treat serious disorders of the musculoskeletal system that result in severe functional limitations. They are able to treat a baby with a birth defect, a patient in a bad car accident, or an elderly person with a broken hip. Physiatrists coordinate the long-term rehabilitation process for patients with spinal cord injuries, cancer, stroke or other neurological disorders, brain injuries, amputations, and multiple sclerosis.

Physiatristscare for patients with:

• acute and chronic pain
• musculoskeletal problems like back and neck pain, tendonitis, pinched nerves and myofascial pain
• experienced catastrophic events resulting in paraplegia, quadriplegia, or traumatic brain injury
• individuals who have had strokes, orthopedic injuries, or neuromuscular disorders such as Duchenne's muscular dystrophy, Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, multiple sclerosis, polio, or ALS