MD Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Direct answer
MD Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, often shortened to MD PMR, is the three-year postgraduate degree for doctors who evaluate and rehabilitate people with disability — stroke, spinal cord injury, amputation, cerebral palsy, joint disease and musculoskeletal pain. Candidates join after MBBS and the compulsory internship through counselling based on NEET-PG ranks, or through INI-CET at the institutes of national importance. The degree qualifies a doctor to lead rehabilitation teams, to prescribe therapy and assistive technology, and to practise musculoskeletal and interventional pain management where trained.
Course structure and curriculum
- Stroke rehabilitation: motor recovery, spasticity management and gait retraining.
- Spinal cord injury care: bladder-bowel programmes, pressure-ulcer prevention and wheelchair skills.
- Musculoskeletal and sports rehabilitation for back pain and post-operative orthopaedic patients.
- Electrodiagnosis training: nerve conduction studies and electromyography interpretation.
- Prosthetics and orthotics: prescription of artificial limbs, braces and adaptive devices.
- Amputee rehabilitation including phantom pain and stump care.
- Paediatric rehabilitation covering cerebral palsy, spina bifida and developmental disability.
- Cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation programme design and supervision.
- Pain management clinics: pharmacological, injection and interventional approaches.
- Physical therapy modalities — electrotherapy, ultrasound, traction and therapeutic exercise principles.
- Occupational therapy, speech and language therapy and vocational rehabilitation exposure.
- Team-based case conferences, disability certification training and dissertation work.
Entrance examinations
PMR seats are allotted through NEET-PG counselling; the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences conducts the exam, with the MCC counselling the All India Quota, central and deemed universities and the states handling their own quotas. INI-CET, conducted by AIIMS New Delhi, covers PMR at the AIIMS campuses, PGIMER Chandigarh and JIPMER Puducherry. Aspirants should be thorough with neurology and orthopaedics from MBBS, rehabilitation concepts and spinal cord injury care.
University examinations
Trainees are graded via internal tests, case presentations at rehabilitation boards, procedure and electrodiagnostic logs and seminar participation. The MD dissertation, compulsory under NMC norms, generally studies a functional outcome or rehabilitation intervention, and the thesis must be accepted before the final examination. The finals pair theory papers on physical medicine, rehabilitation principles and recent advances with a practical examination: a long case involving detailed functional assessment, short cases, viva on orthotic-prosthetic components, electrodiagnostic reports and therapy equipment, plus discussion of disability certification.
Career pathways after MD Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Graduates head rehabilitation medicine departments, run PMR outpatient and pain clinics, and work in spinal injury centres and disability programmes. Certification of disability for government benefits is a statutory service the speciality provides. Academic posts exist in medical colleges. Fellowships in sports medicine, interventional pain, spine rehabilitation and neurorehabilitation widen options, and some graduates develop multidisciplinary centres.
Preparation with PrepElephant
PrepElephant's app supplies previous-year NEET-PG and INI-CET questions, question banks, mock tests and revision tools for PMR aspirants, and residents can drill the same content for university assessments. Free website guides cover counselling and residency planning. Practice material is what is offered.
Frequently asked questions
How long is MD Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation?
Three years after MBBS and the compulsory internship, spread through rehabilitation wards, outpatient clinics and electrodiagnostic laboratories.
Which entrance exam is needed for MD PMR?
NEET-PG conducted by NBEMS, followed by MCC or state counselling, is the usual route; INI-CET admits candidates to the AIIMS group including PGIMER Chandigarh and JIPMER Puducherry.
Does MD PMR require a dissertation?
Yes. A thesis under a university guide, completed and accepted before the final examination, is a compulsory part of the MD under NMC norms.
What is the scope of rehabilitation medicine in India?
Demand grows with stroke survival, road injuries and an ageing population; graduates lead rehabilitation units, pain clinics and disability services in public and private sectors.
Is PMR a surgical speciality?
No. It is a clinical speciality that manages disability medically, though trainees learn injection techniques, electrodiagnosis and close coordination with orthopaedic and neurosurgical colleagues.
Practise this in the PrepElephant app
Question banks, previous-year questions, mock tests and revision tools — for MD Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. Free to start.