物理疗法是一个医疗保健专业，主要致力于最佳人体运动和功能的保存，发展和恢复。物理治疗师提供评估，康复和预防性保健服务，旨在减轻疼痛，防止损伤，功能受限，因伤害，疾病或其他原因导致的残疾的发作和进展，并恢复，维持和促进整体健康，健康和最佳生活质量。物理治疗师与各个年龄段的人合作，这些人表现出神经系统，肌肉骨骼系统，外皮以及心血管和肺部系统的运动功能障碍或潜在的这种功能障碍。
Physical Therapy is a health care profession that primarily focuses on the preservation, development, and restoration of optimal human movement and function. Physical therapists provide evaluative, rehabilitative, and preventive health care services designed to alleviate pain, prevent the onset and progression of impairment, functional limitation, disability resulting from injury, disease, or other causes, and restore, maintain and promote overall fitness, health and optimal quality of life. Physical therapists work with individuals of all ages who demonstrate movement dysfunction, or the potential for such dysfunction, of the neurological, musculoskeletal, integumentary, and cardiovascular and pulmonary systems.<br><br>Physical therapists practice in a hospital setting, or provide services in out-of-hospital settings through home health agencies, in nursing homes, in industrial settings, through public health agencies, in private physical therapy clinics, in public schools and in a variety of other nontraditional settings.