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Gwendolyn Sowa, MD, PhD, Endowed Professor and Chair of the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R) at the University of Pittsburgh/UPMC and Director of the UPMC Rehabilitation Institute, has been elected president of the Association of Academic Physiatrists (AAP), the largest membership society for academic physiatry, at their 2021 Virtual Conference. Dr. Sowa is joined by seven newly elected members of the AAP’s Board of Trustees.

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Risk factors for higher incidence of tennis elbow, a painful tendon condition, among recreational tennis players include frequency of play, wrist stretching before matches, and using a one-handed backhand and Kevlar racquet strings, according to a new study presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting.

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Patients recovering from COVID-19 who had a course of physical therapy in the hospital had lower incidence of mortality compared to those who did not, according to a new study presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting.

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A novel preclinical mouse model of pancreatic cancer may promote better understanding of the mechanisms that lead to disability in human cancer patients, according to the findings of a new study presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting.

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Eating a more pro-inflammatory diet was associated with higher incidence of low back pain, according to a new study presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting.

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How can we teach high school football players about concussion risks to prevent delays in reporting, diagnosing and treating this serious medical condition? The “CrashCourse” program appears more effective than older approaches when it comes educating teen athletes on the urgency of reporting concussion symptoms, according to a new study presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting.

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People treated with chronic opioid therapy for pain are more likely to live in socially disadvantaged areas and self-report worse anxiety, depression and pain that interferes in their lives, according to a new study presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting.

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Vocational interventions effectively help unemployed adults with long-term health conditions or disabilities find and maintain employment, according to a new study presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting in Orlando.

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A new study will evaluate whether persistent symptoms following concussion, also known as post-concussion syndrome, can be treated using a personalized, progressive aerobic exercise program. Data from this ongoing study by researchers at the University of Calgary will be presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting in Orlando.

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Physical training for an extreme sporting event can decrease feelings of helplessness in individuals with chronic disability as long as four months after the event’s completion, according to a new study presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting in Orlando.

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Bilateral lower extremity amputee sprinters outperformed their unilateral competitors in all race finals at recent Paralympics Games, suggesting that high-tech prosthetics provide a distinct athletic advantage, according to a new study presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting in Orlando.

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Women and members of various ethnic groups are still significantly underrepresented in the medical field of physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R), with only 39.23 percent of current residents being women and 10.59 percent identifying as Hispanic or Black. Diversity gaps must be addressed in recruitment efforts in the future, according to a new study presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting in Orlando.

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Physical therapy interventions effectively reduce urinary incontinence symptoms in older women and should be a first-line treatment intervention for patients with this chronic condition, according to a new study presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting in Orlando.

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A reduction in suicides among patients at a Veterans Health Administration (VHA) facility may be due to a multispecialty opioid risk reduction program that included addiction management treatment, according to a new study presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting in Orlando.

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Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) therapies show effectiveness at improving quality of life for patients of various diagnoses in acute rehabilitation, in-patient facilities, according to preliminary data from a new study presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting in Orlando.

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Good exercise habits formed in adolescence correlate positively with exercise habits in adults, and adults with good exercise habits have better physical performance and appropriate body-mass index scores for their age, according to a new study presented this week at the Association of Academic Physiatrists Annual Meeting in Orlando.

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Up to 10 percent of the U.S. population aged 18-24 has some type of disability, whereas only 2.7 percent of U.S. medical students have disclosed a disability. In a new article published in Academic Medicine, an expert task force recommends legal, cultural and technological advances to facilitate the inclusion of students with disabilities.

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A new electromyography biofeedback device that is wearable and connects to novel smartphone games may offer people with incomplete paraplegia a more affordable, self-controllable therapy to enhance their recovery.

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People with West Nile neuro-invasive disease, a severe and systemic illness caused by infection with the mosquito-borne West Nile virus, can have significant functional and cognitive declines and may benefit from individualized, brain injury-specific rehabilitation as a cornerstone of their recovery.

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A four-week interdisciplinary pain management program for worker’s compensation patients with chronic pain significantly reduced their opioid and benzodiazepine use.