Chronic pain is the number one cause of adult disability in the United States and costs an estimated $100 billion in lost productivity each year. "Many people experiencing pain, including those at the end of life, receive little or no relief," said Dr. Patricia Evans, a physical therapist and the chief executive officer of the California Physical Therapy Association (CPTA). "Sufferers of chronic pain can be marginalized, and their pain often is not properly assessed or managed."

Physial Therapy can offer relief from chronic pain through the use of many different types of treatment, such as exercise, modalities (heat, ice, e-stim, etc.), stretching, massage, ergonomic worksite assessments, and retraining patients in their approach to activities of daily living.

In observance of National Pain Awareness Month, physical therapists throughout California join forces every September to educate the public on the role physical therapists can play in pain relief and management. To illuminate the challenges facing people with chronic pain, the U.S. Congress passed a mandate declaring 2000-2010 as the Decade of Pain Control and Research. The California legislature passed Senate Concurrent Resolution 86 in August 2004 to further proclaim September as Pain Awareness Month to encourage all "Californians to improve the quality of life for people in California suffering from pain."