Physical therapy abbreviations
Using physical therapy abbreviations is one of those opportunities most PTs would jump at to streamline their documentation. Shortening commonly used terms through abbreviation can be a useful strategy to cut down on the time you spend writing notes.
Abbreviations are commonplace in many industries and physical therapy is no exception. Used correctly, medical abbreviations in physical therapy practice can enhance documentation efficiency, but careless use of abbreviations can compromise the purpose, quality and clarity of your notes.
In this article, we will review commonly used physical therapy abbreviations and provide helpful tips to make sure you are abbreviating responsibly.
Let’s start with a checklist you can follow to ensure your documentation maintains its fidelity.
Summary
- Physical therapy abbreviations can help streamline documentation and save time when used correctly.
- PT documentation should remain clear, accurate, and understandable to other providers involved in patient care.
- Therapists should avoid prohibited abbreviations and use caution with specialty-specific shorthand that others may not recognize.
- An EHR can further improve documentation efficiency through templates, workflows, and streamlined communication tools.
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- Insurance claims
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- E-fax
Checking your work when using physical therapy abbreviations
When you choose to use a physical therapy abbreviation in your documentation, take time to ensure that your use of abbreviations achieves these goals:
- The PT medical abbreviation accurately describes what was done and communicated between the patient and the therapist
- Physical therapy abbreviations can be easily understood by another therapist who may treat your patient at a later date
- The PT medical abbreviation can be understood by other healthcare professionals who may be reading your notes and relying on that information to inform their own care
- The PT medical abbreviation meets the standards of high-quality documentation
- You are not using abbreviations prohibited by the Joint Commission such as Q.D, QD, q.d., qd (daily) Q.O.D., QOD, q.o.d., qod (every other day) and instead are writing out “daily” or “every other day.”
Common physical therapy abbreviations
Below, you will find a thorough, though not exhaustive, list of common PT medical abbreviations:
Assessment abbreviations
- AAROM: Active assist range of motion
- ADLs: Activities of daily living
- A/P: Anterior-posterior
- AROM: Active range of motion
- FWB: Full weight bearing
- IADLs: Instrumental activities of daily living
- Inf: Inferior
- M/L: Medial-lateral
- MMT: Manual muscle testing
- NPRS: Numeric Pain Rating Scale
- PAM: Passive accessory motion
- PIVM: Passive intervertebral motion
- PROM: Passive range of motion
- ROM: Range of motion
- Sup: Superior
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Treatment abbreviations
- AAROM: Active assist range of motion
- AROM: Active range of motion
- ART: Active Release Therapy
- Bil or B/L: Bilateral
- BLE: Bilateral lower extremity
- BUE: Bilateral upper extremity
- CTx: Cervical traction
- EOB: Edge of bed
- HEP: Home exercise program
- IDN: Integrative dry needling
- LAQ: Long arc quad
- LE: Lower extremity
- LLE: Left lower extremity
- LT or L: Left
- LTx: Lumbar traction
- LUE: Left upper extremity
- MFD: Myofascial decompression
- MFR: Myofascial release
- NMR: Neuromuscular Re-education
- NPO: Nothing by Mouth
- NWB: Non-weight bearing
- PAM: Passive accessory motion
- PIVM: Passive intervertebral motion
- PNF: Proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation
- POC: Plan of care
- PROM: Passive range of motion
- PWB: Partial weight bearing
- RT or R: Right
- RLE: Right lower extremity
- RUE: Right upper extremity
- SLR: Straight leg raise
- STM: Soft tissue mobilization
- Therex or TE: Therapeutic exercise
- TTWB: Toe-touch weight bearing
Therapeutic modalities
- NMES: Neuromuscular Electrical Stimulation
- Estim or ES: Electrical Stimulation
- ESWT: Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy
- FES: Functional Electrical Stimulation
- TENS: Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation
- US: Ultrasound
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Click below and help yourself to peer-created resources:
Anatomical abbreviations
Body structures and systems
- CNS: Central nervous system
- CV: Cardiovascular
- GI: Gastrointestinal
- GU: Genitourinary
- MSK: Musculoskeletal
- PNS: Peripheral nervous system
Cardiorespiratory
- BP: Blood pressure
- HR: Heart Rate
- O2 Sat or %O2: Oxygen saturation
- RPE: Rate of Perceived Exertion
- RRR: Regular rate and rhythm
Neuromuscular
- A&O: Alert and Oriented
- CN I-XII: Cranial Nerve 1-12
- DTR: Deep tendon reflexes
- EEG: Electroencephalogram
- EMG: Electromyography
- FTN or FNT: Finger-to-Nose or Finger-Nose Test
- H2S: Heel to Shin
- MAS: Modified Ashworth Scale (spasticity)
- RAM: Rapid alternating movement
- VOR: Vestibulo-ocular reflex
- 4WW: Four-wheel walker
Musculoskeletal + directions of motion
- Abd: Abduction
- ADD: Adduction
- C/S: Cervical spine
- DF: Dorsiflexion
- ER: External rotation
- Ev: Eversion
- Ext: Extension
- Flex: Flexion
- Inv: Inversion
- IR: Internal rotation
- T/S Thoracic Spine
- L/S: Lumbar spine
Functional abbreviations
- CGA: Contact guard assist
- Dep: Dependent
- FWW: Front-wheeled walker
- 4WW: Four-wheeled walker
- Indep: Independent
- MaxA: Maximal assistance
- MinA: Minimal assistance
- ModA: Moderate assistance
- ModI: Modified independent
- SBA: Stand by assistance
- Superv: Supervision
- TotalA: Total assistance
- W/C: Wheelchair
Timing and documentation
- BID: Twice a day
- c̅ : With
- CC: Chief complaint
- C/O: Complaints of
- D/C: Discharge
- EMR: Electronic medical record
- H/O: History of
- Hx: History
- IE: Initial eval
- LTG: Long-term goal
- PHI: Pertinent Health Information
- PN: Progress Note
- PMH: Past Medical History
- POC: Plan of Care
- PRN: As needed
- STG: Short-term goal
- TID: Three times a day
Common conditions and anatomy encountered by physical therapists
- AC: Acromioclavicular
- ACL: Anterior cruciate ligament
- AD: Alzheimer’s Dementia
- A. Fib: Atrial fibrillation
- AKA: Above-the-knee amputee
- ALS: Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
- ASD: Autism spectrum disorder
- BKA: Below-the-knee amputee
- CA: Cancer
- CABG: Coronary artery bypass graft
- CAD: Coronary artery disease
- CHF: Congestive Heart Failure
- CMC Joint: Carpometacarpal joint
- COPD: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
- CP: Cerebral Palsy
- CVA: Cerebrovascular accident/stroke
- DDD: Degenerative disc disease
- DJD: Degenerative joint disease
- DM I/II: Diabetes Mellitus Type 1/Type 2
- DVT: Deep vein thrombosis
- ESRD: End-Stage Renal Disease
- Fx: Fracture
- GH: Glenohumeral
- IP Joint: Interphalangeal joint
- LCL: Lateral collateral ligament
- MCL: Medial collateral ligament
- MS: Multiple Sclerosis
- OSA: Obstructive Sleep Apnea
- PAD: Peripheral artery disease
- PCL: Posterior cruciate ligament
- PCS: Post-Concussion Syndrome
- PD: Parkinson’s Disease
- PF: Plantar fasciitis
- PVD: Peripheral vascular disease
- SC Joint: Sternoclavicular Joint
- SCI: Spinal Cord Injury
- TBI: Traumatic Brain Injury
- TKA: Total knee arthroplasty
- THA: Total hip arthroplasty
- TMT Joint: Tarsometatarsal joint
PT specializations
- ACCE: Academic Coordinator of Clinical Education
- CCCE: Clinical Coordinator of Clinical Education
- CCS: Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Certified Specialist
- CFMT: Certified Functional Manual Therapist
- CHT: Certified Hand Therapist
- CI: Clinical Instructor
- CLT: Certified Lymphedema Therapist
- COMT: Certified Orthopedic Manual Therapist
- COTA: Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant
- GCS: Geriatric Certified Specialist
- NCS: Neurologic Certified Specialist
- OCS: Orthopedic Certified Specialist
- PCS: Pediatric Certified Specialist
- PTA: Physical Therapy Assistant
- SLPA: Speech Language Pathology Assistant
Avoiding common pitfalls when using physical therapy abbreviations
The use of physical therapy abbreviations or acronyms can be a helpful tool to increase the efficiency of documentation. We’ve already reviewed some important considerations when using abbreviations or acronyms to help ensure your documentation remains thorough and understandable by other providers who may also care for your patient.
Improper use of physical therapy abbreviations can lead to payment delays, poor communication and even put your patient at risk.
As you begin to incorporate some of these abbreviations and acronyms into your documentation, here are a few tips that align with recommendations published on this matter by the American Physical Therapy Association:
- Use abbreviations and acronyms sparingly
- Minimize the use of abbreviations and acronyms in notes that are likely to be read by healthcare providers outside of the therapy professions, such as initial evaluations, discharge and progress notes. This will ensure these providers understand your findings, assessments, and recommendations for your shared patients. This will improve continuity of care.
- Check with your employer to learn whether there is a list of approved acronyms or abbreviations that you can use when documenting.
- Remember that treatment-specific abbreviations may only be familiar to those therapists who have taken a continuing education course in that treatment technique or modality. Minimize the use of these abbreviations or be sure to define them within your notes somewhere, in case another therapist will also treat that patient at some point.
- When in doubt, write it out. A physical therapy abbreviation is only useful if they maintain the clarity and effectiveness of your documentation. If there is a chance someone will not understand your PT medical abbreviation or confuse it for another term, write it out instead.
How EHRs can help with documentation
Modern EHR/practice management platforms (such as TheraPlatform) assist greatly with documentation by providing HIPAA‑compliant, integrated systems for note entry, storage, scheduling, and billing.
They allow therapists to:
- Use and customize templates (e.g., SOAP, DAP, and others) or build their own to streamline note writing and ensure consistency.
- Link notes to treatment plans, goals, and session history so client progress is easily tracked over time.
- Utilize e-fax and secure document sharing via client portal to safely exchange information with clients or other providers while maintaining confidentiality.
- Leverage dictation and telehealth transcription, which can automatically convert sessions into therapy or assessment notes, saving time and reducing manual entry.
- Take advantage of AI features that streamline documentation by automatically populating intake form data into assessment templates and generating complete therapy and assessment notes from the information you provide, all with a single click.
Watch this video to learn how to save time on therapy notes
Meanwhile, AI‑assisted note tools are emerging which can further help clinicians by:
- Automatically transcribing session audio (if permitted) and highlighting key moments (e.g. emotional shifts, major themes).
- Suggesting draft notes or filling in objective or assessment sections based on observed data, freeing up clinicians’ time.
- Supporting consistency and reducing missing components in notes, which helps from both clinical, legal, and insurance perspectives.
Together, structured SOAP‑type notes, good EHR platforms, and smart AI tools support better therapeutic outcomes, more efficient workflows, and stronger accountability.
Streamline your practice with One EHR
- Scheduling
- Flexible notes
- Template library
- Billing & payments
- Insurance claims
- Client portal
- Telehealth
- E-fax
Resources for physical therapists
TheraPlatform is an all-in-one EHR, practice management, and teletherapy software with AI-powered notes built for therapists to help them save time on admin tasks. It offers a 30-day risk-free trial with no credit card required and supports different industries and sizes of practices, including physical therapists in group and solo practices.
More resources
- Therapy resources and worksheets
- Therapy private practice courses
- Ultimate teletherapy ebook
- The Ultimate Insurance Billing Guide for Therapists
- The Ultimate Guide to Starting a Private Therapy Practice
- Insurance billing 101
- Practice management tools
Free video classes
- Free on-demand insurance billing for therapist course
- Free mini video lessons to enhance your private practice
- 9 Admin tasks to automate in your private practice
FAQs about physical therapy abbreviations
What are common physical therapy abbreviations?
Common PT abbreviations include AROM (active range of motion), HEP (home exercise program), TE (therapeutic exercise), and POC (plan of care).
Why is proper use of PT abbreviations important?
Improper abbreviations can lead to confusion, documentation errors, delayed payments, and communication issues between providers.
How can EHRs help physical therapists with documentation?
EHRs can speed up note-taking, improve accuracy, streamline goal writing, and enhance communication between providers.
