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The Department of Physical Medicine, Rehabilitation, Occupational Therapy and Sports at the Medical University of Pleven was established in 2006 as a continuation of the former divisions of Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation and Sports, which were a part of other departments at MU–Pleven.
The Sector “Physical Medicine, Rehabilitation and Occupational Therapy” is part of the Department of Physical Medicine, Rehabilitation, Occupational Therapy and Sports. It works in close collaboration with the Clinic of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine at the University Hospital – Pleven. The sector employs ten lecturers, including one professor and four associate professors.
The Sector carries out its academic and clinical activities both within the university and at the clinical facilities of the Clinic of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine at the University Hospital – Pleven. It represents the only university structure of its kind in the North-Central and North-West regions of Bulgaria (according to the regional division of the Ministry of Health and the National Health Insurance Fund).
The Clinic was established more than half a century ago under the leadership of Dr Rusi Rusev, then Chief Physician of the Pleven Hospital, and Dr Aleksandar Pomakov, a specialist in Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation.
The Clinic operates according to established protocols for physical therapy and rehabilitation of a wide range of socially significant and disabling conditions, including rare diseases. It applies modern specialised and highly specialised physical-diagnostic and physical-therapeutic methods.
The Clinic’s multidisciplinary team includes physicians specialising in Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine and Neurology, kinesiotherapists, rehabilitation therapists, and specialists in medical rehabilitation and occupational therapy.
Specialised therapeutic procedures include treatment with low-, medium-, and high-frequency currents; ultrasound therapy; magnetic field therapy; infrared and ultraviolet light therapy; active and passive kinesiotherapy; mechanotherapy; hydro-kinesiotherapy; and various manual and vibration massage techniques, including reflex massage.
Comprehensive functional assessment of the musculoskeletal and nervous systems is performed through goniometry, manual muscle testing, plantography, assessment of central and peripheral motor neuron function, balance and coordination testing, gait and grip analysis, and evaluation of independence in activities of daily living.
Among the highly specialised areas of practice, the Clinic has developed significant scientific and clinical expertise in excitomotor electrodiagnostics and electrostimulation, manual diagnostics and manual therapy, post-isometric relaxation, extension therapy, laser therapy and laser acupuncture, and reflex therapy.
The Clinic also includes an inpatient unit for early rehabilitation, offering facilities for follow-up and long-term rehabilitation of chronic conditions, particularly those affecting the nervous and musculoskeletal systems.
