Introduction: Physical Disability

Abstract

In the late 1970s, as I was starting my research career, many in the physical therapy and medical research communities saw the measurement and study of disability as a “soft,” undesirable topic for scientific investigation. Although it was acceptable for clinical physical therapists to speak of the importance of their services for having an impact on a patient's function or disability, it certainly was not a topic for serious research. Scientists focused on “hard” physiologic outcomes that could presumably be measured with more certainty. Much has changed since the 1970s. Disability is now recognized as having a major economic impact on our society and a potentially devastating effect on persons with disabilities. Between 35 and 43 million Americans have one or more conditions that result in disability, and the annual economic costs in the United States exceed $170 billion.1…