World Physical Therapy Day 2026 on 8 September turns the profession’s attention to cardiovascular disease and stroke, together the leading cause of death worldwide, and an area where physiotherapy changes lives across prevention, management and rehabilitation. Learn the clinical essentials of good cardiovascular and stroke care with evidence-based resources to help you strengthen your practice.
Today is World Physical Therapy (PT) Day, and this year World Physiotherapy has chosen to focus on physiotherapy and physical activity in the prevention, management and rehabilitation of cardiovascular disease and stroke. The scale is striking: cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death worldwide, claiming more than 20.5 million lives a year (over 30% of all global deaths) with around 85% due to heart attack and stroke, and more than three quarters occurring in low- and middle-income countries. Much of this is preventable, and physiotherapists are well placed to identify people at higher risk, prescribe safe and individualised exercise, and support the physical activity that protects the heart and brain over a lifetime. Yet a persistent gap remains between evidence and practice: nearly a third of adults and around 80% of adolescents do not meet basic activity guidelines, and closing it through skilled behaviour change is one of the clearest ways we can reduce cardiovascular and stroke risk.
Stroke is both a major cause of death and a leading cause of long-term disability. Around one in four of us will have a stroke in our lifetime, yet almost all strokes can be prevented, and just 30 minutes of exercise five times a week can cut stroke risk by around 25%. When stroke does occur, confident rehabilitation begins with understanding the presentation: the type, mechanism and arterial territory involved shape the pattern of impairment and the rehabilitation implications that follow. From there, recovery is rarely linear and rarely the same between two people with the same diagnosis, so effective care depends on individualised, evidence-informed reasoning, judging when the nervous system is primed for intensive practice, progressing intensity safely, and selecting interventions around the goals that matter to each patient. The resources below can help you sharpen that reasoning.
1. Free, open-access reference resources
Free to access anywhere in the world, these are a reliable first stop for building or refreshing your foundational knowledge. You can start with the key Physiopedia pages on Stroke, Cardiovascular disease, Cardiac rehabilitation and Physical activity. And for some concise, evidence-based summaries from World Physiotherapy you can share with patients and colleagues, the World PT Day 2026 information sheets are available in multiple languages.
2. New: Physical Activity Across the Lifespan Programme
For the prevention side of the theme, the new Physical Activity Across the Lifespan Programme on Physiopedia Plus (Plus), helps you turn activity guidance into lasting change with practical strategies to address barriers and tailor interventions to every life stage. Available with a Full Plus subscription.
3. New guideline: 2026 Adult Stroke Rehabilitation and Recovery (AHA/ASA)
The 2026 Guideline for Adult Stroke Rehabilitation and Recovery from the American Heart Association and American Stroke Association spans the whole recovery continuum and is open access for all.
4. New free Trial course: Anatomy of a Stroke
Anatomy of a Stroke is currently the featured Trial course on Plus, free to everyone, no payment details required. Available to free Trial or Full Plus members.
5. Contemporary Framework for Stroke Management Programme
For a more advanced pathway, the new Contemporary Framework for Stroke Management Programme on Plus takes you from acute presentation to community reintegration. Available with a Full Plus subscription.
6. New Physiopedia-authored research: stroke rehabilitation in low-resource settings
This year’s theme is a reminder that most cardiovascular and stroke burden falls on low- and middle-income countries, where access to rehabilitation is often scarce. A new open-access study co-authored by the Physiopedia team, Continuing professional development to strengthen stroke rehabilitation: learning outcomes from Myanmar, is an encouraging example of how accessible, peer-supported education can put evidence-based stroke rehabilitation into practice where it is needed most.
Whether you are preventing a first cardiac event, reducing stroke risk or rebuilding function after a stroke, the same principle runs through this year’s theme: physical activity and skilled, individualised rehabilitation are among the most powerful tools we have. By grounding your practice in the anatomy, the evidence and person-centred reasoning, you can make a real difference to the millions affected by cardiovascular disease and stroke worldwide.
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