Physical therapy students need quick access to clear definitions, practical clinical concepts, and reliable study resources. This physical therapy FAQ covers essential PT terms, movement concepts, common orthopedic conditions, and treatment modalities while linking to deeper articles on PT abbreviations, special tests, modalities, and physical therapy careers.
Use this page as a student-friendly study guide for coursework, labs, charting review, and clinical placements, then follow the internal links to explore each topic in more depth.
Core Physical Therapy Terms
What is physical therapy?
Physical therapy, also called physiotherapy, is a healthcare profession focused on the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of pain, injury, disability, and movement dysfunction using exercise, manual therapy, education, and rehabilitation strategies. It is part of conventional healthcare and underpins musculoskeletal, orthopedic, neurological, and functional rehabilitation.
For a broader overview of the profession and its pathways, see How to Become a Physical Therapist and Physical Therapy / Physiotherapy Schools and Programs.
What is physiotherapy?
Physiotherapy and physical therapy are two names for the same profession. “Physical therapy” is used more often in the United States, while “physiotherapy” is commonly used in many other countries.
Students comparing rehab professions may also want to read Differences Between Occupational Therapy and Physical Therapy.
What does DPT mean?
DPT stands for Doctor of Physical Therapy or Doctor of Physiotherapy. The source page explains that the DPT began in the United States as a transitional degree and later became a standard professional degree.
For more on career planning and program entry, visit How to Become a Physical Therapist.
What does FCAMPT mean?
FCAMPT stands for Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Manipulative Physiotherapy. According to the source page, this designation reflects advanced post-graduate training and internationally recognized qualifications in hands-on therapy.
This term is especially relevant for students interested in orthopedic practice, manual therapy, and advanced musculoskeletal assessment.
For more vocabulary and charting shorthand, review Physical Therapy Abbreviations & Charting Shorthand and Medical Mnemonics for Physical Therapy.
Range of Motion and Assessment Terms
What does AAROM mean?
AAROM stands for Active Assisted Range of Motion. It refers to movement through the available range of motion with assistance from a therapist or from the patient using tools such as towels, pulleys, or similar devices.
What does AROM mean?
AROM stands for Active Range of Motion. It describes the range through which a patient can actively move a joint using their own muscles without external assistance.
What does PROM mean?
PROM stands for Passive Range of Motion. It refers to movement through a body part’s available range without the patient actively contracting the muscles, with motion supplied by an outside force such as the therapist.
AAROM, AROM, and PROM are foundational examination and documentation concepts, and they frequently appear in PT charting shorthand and home exercise planning.
What do varus and valgus mean?
Varus refers to inward angulation of the distal segment of a bone or joint, while valgus refers to outward angulation. The source page uses genu varus as bow-legged alignment and genu valgus as knock-kneed alignment.
These terms are commonly used in orthopedic examination and lower-limb assessment, especially when studying the knee and ankle.
What is an end feel?
An end feel is the sensation perceived when a joint is moved to the end of its available range of motion. The source page explains that end feel can reflect joint health or injury and lists examples such as soft, rubbery, bony, hard, capsular, empty, and spasm.
End feel is a core concept in joint assessment and manual examination.
Common Conditions and Clinical Terms
What is bursitis?
Bursitis is inflammation of a bursa, and the source page notes that it commonly occurs around joints such as the knee, elbow, ankle, and shoulder. A bursa itself is a fluid-filled sac that helps reduce friction around a joint.
For related orthopedic shoulder content, review Shoulder Orthopedic Tests, the Hawkins Kennedy Test, and the Painful Arc Test.
What is a subluxation?
Subluxation is the partial displacement or partial dislocation of a joint, where the joint surfaces remain partly in contact rather than being fully separated.
For shoulder instability assessment, see the Apprehension Test and Jobe Relocation Test.
What is Iliotibial Band Syndrome?
Iliotibial Band Syndrome is a condition characterized by lateral knee pain caused by the iliotibial band rubbing against the lateral epicondyle of the femur and producing local inflammation. The source page also notes that tightness in the tensor fasciae latae is commonly implicated.
For more lower-limb assessment resources, see Common Knee Tests in Orthopedic Examination, Apley’s Test, and Common Ankle Tests in Orthopedic Examination.
What is the Coffee Cup Sign?
The Coffee Cup Sign refers to pain during simple gripping activities such as lifting a coffee cup. The source page states that it is commonly present in people with lateral epicondylitis, also known as tennis elbow.
For more upper-limb assessment resources, visit Common Elbow Tests in Orthopedic Examination.
What does SLAP stand for?
SLAP stands for Superior Labrum Anterior and Posterior. The source page directs readers to the Anterior Slide Test as a related examination resource for SLAP lesions.
Students reviewing shoulder pathology should also see Shoulder Orthopedic Tests, O’Brien’s Test, Apprehension Test, Jobe Relocation Test, and Gerber’s Lift-Off Test.
Programs, Modalities, and Careers
What does HEP mean?
HEP stands for Home Exercise Program. The original page points readers to Exercise Prescription Software used to create home exercise programs for patients.
What is Therapeutic Ultrasound?
Therapeutic ultrasound is a modality that uses high-frequency sound waves to promote healing by increasing blood flow to an area of the body. The source page notes that it is commonly used in physical therapy practice and links to a more detailed resource.
Read more: Therapeutic Ultrasound in Physical Therapy.
What is Shockwave Therapy?
Shockwave therapy is an electrotherapeutic modality used by physical therapists to promote tissue healing by producing microtrauma through high-energy acoustic pulses. The site’s shockwave page notes that it is used for musculoskeletal conditions including plantar fasciitis, jumper’s knee, tennis elbow, Achilles tendinitis, bursitis, and rotator cuff pain.
Read more: Shockwave Therapy / Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy (ESWT).
How do I get started in a physical therapy career?
The source page recommends reading How to Become a Physical Therapist for more information on what it means to be a physical therapist and how to enter physical therapy school.
Related resources include Physical Therapy / Physiotherapy Schools and Programs, What is a Physical Therapist Assistant?, and What is a Physical Therapist Aide?.
This list of frequently asked questions is partially related to the ‘Physical Therapy Web’ site itself, though general physical therapy questions are included as well. The questions are compiled from those that have been sent in over the years. If you have a question that doesn’t appear in the list, please feel free to contact us.
“Physiotherapy (also known as physical therapy) is a health profession concerned with the assessment, diagnosis and treatment of disease and disability through physical means. It is based upon principles of medical science, and is generally held to be within the sphere of conventional (rather than alternative) medicine. “
— from Wikipedia
The terms ‘physiotherapy’ and ‘physical therapy’ are interchangeable. ‘Physical therapy’ is most commonly used in the United States while most of the rest of the world uses the term ‘physiotherapy’ instead.
DPT means ‘Doctor of Physical Therapy’ or ‘Doctor of Physiotherapy’. The DPT first started in the United States in 1992 as a “transitional” degree for individuals who already had physical therapy degrees. It is now offered in its non-transitional form in the United States and many other parts of the world. Physical Therapy schools are transitioning to exclusively DPT programs.
FCAMPT stands for Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Manipulative Physiotherapy. Therapists with the FCAMPT designation “have completed post-graduate education and attained internationally-recognized qualifications in hands-on therapy”.
AAROM is an acronym for Active Assisted Range of Motion, a term commonly used by physical therapists to refer to physical movements through the normal or available range of motion with assistance. The assistance can be provided by a therapist or by the patient themselves through the use of devices, such as towels, pulleys or other assistive devices.
AROM is an acronym for Active Range of Motion, a term commonly used by physical therapists when referring to the range of movement through which a patient can actively (without external assistance) move a joint using the muscles adjacent to the joint.
PROM is an acronym for Passive Range of Motion, a term commonly used by physical therapists when referring to moving a body part through it’s available range without the activation of the patient’s muscles. The movement itself is performed by an external source such as a physical therapist.
Varus refers to an inward angulation of the distal segment of a bone or joint. For example, a person with both knees in varus has “Genu Varus” and is sometimes referred to as ‘bow-legged’. It is common for people to mix up the terms ‘varus’ and ‘valgus’ so a common way physical therapists keep them straight is by thinking of a ‘bow-legged’ cowboy saying ‘Varus my horse?”.
Valgus refers to an outward angulation of the distal segment of a bone or joint. For example, a person with both knees with valgus has Genu Valgus and is sometimes referred to as ‘knock-kneed’.
An end feel is the feeling, or sensation, that a person feels when they move a joint to its end of available range of motion. The type of end feel can be indicative of the health of the joint or the presence of possible injury. Some of the terms often used to describe an end feel include soft, rubbery, mushy, squishy, springy, boggy, abrupt, bony, hard, capsular, stretchy, empty, spasm.
A bursa is a fluid-filled sac or saclike cavity, especially one countering friction at a joint.
Bursitis is the inflammation of a bursa, typically one in the knee, elbow, ankle or shoulder.
Subluxation is the partial displacement or partial dislocation of a joint. The joint surfaces are still partly in contact. The joint is not completely dislocated.
In physical therapy, a manipulation is when the therapist applies a specific force to a joint in order to move it beyond its normal PROM. A joint manipulation is often accompanied by a cracking sound.
HEP is short for ‘Home Exercise Program’. View our list of Exercise Prescription Software often used for creating home exercise programs.
Iliotibial Band Syndrome is a condition in which a person experiences lateral knee pain due to the Iliotibial Band (ITB) rubbing on the lateral epicondyle of the femur, causing local inflammation. The rubbing of the band on the knee is usually considered to be due to tightness in the tensor fasciae latae, a hip muscle that attaches to the ITB.
The coffee cup sign is characterized by pain during simple grip activities such as grabbing and lifting a coffee cup. It is typically present in people with lateral epicondylitis, otherwise known as Tennis Elbow.
The acronym SLAP is named for the Superior Labrum Anterior and Posterior. You can read about how to test for such lesions on our examination special test page for the Anterior Slide Test.
Check out our ‘Becoming a Physical Therapist‘ article. It contains information on what it means to be a physical therapist and what to do to get into a physical therapy school.
For information on this, please see the following page:
What is a Physical Therapist Assistant?
For information on this, please see the following page:
What is a Physical Therapist Aide?
Therapeutic ultrasound is a modality that uses high-frequency sound waves to promote healing by increasing the blood flow to an area of the body. It is commonly used in physical therapy practice. For a more complete explanation, please see the following page:
Therapeutic Ultrasound in Physical Therapy
Shockwave therapy is an electrotherapeuitic modality used by physical therapists to promote tissue healing via microtrauma caused by high energy acoustic pulses. For a more complete explanation, please see the following page: Shockwave Therapy / Extracorporeal Shock Wave Therapy (ESWT)
The name ‘Web Space’ was actually intended to be a clever play on words. While studying for gross anatomy class back in physical therapy school I came across the term ‘web space’ in reference to the area of skin between the fingers, particularly between the index finger and the thumb. At about the same time I was creating the original incarnation of this ‘web’ site and thought the name would be an appropriate and amusing double entendre. Unfortunately, it seems I was the only one to think so. Either nobody else in the physio world picked up on the connection or everyone thought the joke to be too lame to acknowledge. Not very clever at all I suppose. Regardless, the name has stuck.
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