Dedication

This issue is dedicated to Dr William M. Fowler, Jr, a pioneer in the rehabilitation management of persons with neuromuscular diseases. Dr Fowler was on the medical faculty of the University of California (at UCLA and UC Davis) from 1964 to 1991. He was the Founding Chair of the Department of PM&R at UC Davis in 1968 and served as Chair there from 1968 to 1984. He was President of the American Academy of PM&R in 1980 and 1981. He was Founding Director of the NIDRR funded Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (RRTC) in Neuromuscular Diseases. The UC Davis RRTC in Neuromuscular Diseases remains the longest continuously funded RRTC in NIDRR history. Subsequent to his retirement, Dr Fowler served as an active Professor Emeritus at the UC Davis School of Medicine for decades, where he helped recruit Drs Greg Carter and David Kilmer to join the faculty in 1991, and helped recruit me to join the faculty in 1992. Dr Fowler is a past recipient of the Krusen Award, the American Academy of PM&R’s highest honor. He previously authored a number of seminal articles on the natural history of NMDs, the role of creatine kinase for diagnosis and screening in muscular dystrophy, contraction-induced injury and overwork weakness in muscular dystrophy, physical activity and exercise training in neuromuscular diseases, manual muscle testing and quantitative strength testing, progressive resistive exercises, aerobic exercise, quantification of muscle contractility, management of contractures, natural history of scoliosis, cognitive assessment, employment, and quality of life in neuromuscular diseases.

It should be noted that Bill Fowler remains “sharp as a tack today,” a coauthor at age 86 on the first article of this issue, and a valued source of wisdom and counsel for me and other colleagues at UC Davis for decades. Dr Fowler most importantly has left a lasting legacy by helping to train generations of PM&R and neuromuscular medicine specialists, who have developed a focus on the clinical management and rehabilitation of neuromuscular diseases. In addition, Dr Fowler deeply impacted the field of PM&R by counseling the Chairs of Departments of PM&R throughout the country to develop improved research capacity of their junior faculty and inspiring PM&R academicians in a variety of rehabilitation subspecialty areas to develop a more scientific and evidence-based approach to their practice. To quote from his American Academy of PM&R Presidential Address on November 3, 1981:

“Research is the single most important factor that will directly determine the acceptance of academic PM&R, and the viability of physiatry.”

With sincere gratitude,

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