Mr. Claudio Carvalho, DO, MS

Media Releases

Get to know Physiatrist Dr. Claudio Carvalho, who serves patients in California.

A board-certified and fellowship-trained physiatrist, Dr. Carvalho is the Medical Director of Functional Orthopedic Rehabilitation Medicine Associates (FORMA). He aims for the mutual understanding of each patient’s conditions using a case-specific plan of care supported by World-wide evidence-base  knowledge. 

The mission of FORMA is to identify, understand, and treat the root cause of the physical problem, and to provide an effective rehabilitation plan to assist each patient to reach their goals and get back to their best activity performance and improved quality of life. All treatment plans emphasize whole patient care; medical and health professionals work in coordination with one another to maximize each patient’s healing process; and a team approach assists in optimizing the recovery time, restore and improve each patient’s overall function, leading to their increased performance, avoiding recurrence of avoidable injuries, and ultimately promote longevity for engaging in activities that are important to each of us.

Caring for each patient’s individual goals, Dr. Carvalho (known to his patients as Dr. C) uses a synergistic approach of activity adaptation, wellness, pain control, and regenerative medicine to optimize each patient’s ability to excel in their physical health rehabilitation process. The result is faster recovery, better health, a higher level of functional performance, and improved enjoyable life.

From a young age, Claudio Carvalho became involved in competitive sports, when he was coached in high level performance training, He experienced and participated in a team approach care (doctors, trainers and coaches working together) during the rehabilitation of his own sports injuries.

After shadowing and assisting his father who was an electrical engineer, Carvalho graduated from high-school with a concomitant certificate as an electronic technician. During his college years, he worked in the offshore oil fields in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil as the first certified underwater remote operated vehicle (ROV). He also served as a sports conditioning coach during his senior year. After earning his degree in exercise physiology/physical education, Carvalho owned his own fitness academy where he provided general fitness training, sports conditioning, wellness program, and corporate/occupational injury prevention programs.

In confluence with his engineering and physiology background, Carvalho aimed to pursue graduate studies. He earned a Master’s of Science in Kinesiology with emphasis in Occupation and Sports Biomechanics completing his biomechanics thesis for the Basic Fire Academy in Santa Ana. He also managed a corporate fitness and wellness program for Pacific Bell and provided private sports and rehabilitation conditioning training.

Claudio Carvalho joined the Department of Osteopathic Medicine as a graduate assistant at the Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine (MSUCOM) assisting in research and medical education conferences and workshops.

Graduating with his Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine degree from the MSUCOM, Dr. Carvalho completed his residency training  in physical medicine and rehabilitation (PM&R) at the VA Medical Center – Wadsworth LA, affiliated to the University of California, Los Angeles. He is board-certified in physical medicine and rehabilitation by the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (ABPMR), which is an organization that provides board certification to qualified doctors who are dedicated to caring for the whole person, including treating pain, restoring function, and improving quality of life. Dr. Carvalho furthered his training by undergoing  fellowship training in interventional pain management. 

Dr. Carvalho is a staff physician at Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach, California.

Physical medicine and rehabilitation, also known as physiatry and physiatrics, is a branch of medicine that aims to enhance and restore functional ability and quality of life to those with limitations for optimal performance due to injuries,  physical impairments or disabilities. Physiatrists treat a wide variety of medical conditions affecting the brain, spinal cord, nerves, bones, joints, ligaments, muscles, and tendons. 

On a more personal note, Dr. Carvalho speaks several languages, including English, Spanish, and Portuguese, in his free time he continues maintaining his fitness (defined in  biology as the ability of the “organism” to adapt to the ability to survive in a particular environment), and enjoys kitesurfing.

Recommended Articles

• Gabapentin: Abuse, Withdrawal, and Overdose

  Most holistic addiction centers use gabapentin in one form or another to help their patients deal with addiction. However, many patients have started to abuse this drug after prolonged exposure during the course of their rehab process.Gabapentin is usually available in the form of tablets and has...

• Healthy Teeth for a Healthy Life

  Dentists suggest that infection and inflammation of the oral cavity correlates with other medical conditions, like a heart attack or dementia, and can cause serious health concerns over a period of time. Although the causes and effects between oral health and health conditions are not yet...

• Ovarian Cancer Survivor Raises Awareness with Frozen Yogurt

  For almost all women in Gulfport, Mississippi, it’s business as usual. The daily, weekly, and monthly concerns of most women are occasionally interrupted by concerns about their bodies, but over a lifetime of navigating womanhood, it seldom crosses their minds past the immediate moment. The same...

• What is Xanthan Gum?

  Occurrence, Isolation Xanthun gum is an extracellular high molecular weight polysaccharide. It is obtained by microbial fermentation from Xanthomonas campestris and some other related micro organisms. The microorganism is produced on a medium which contains glucose, NH4Cl, and a mixture of amino...

• Is Arthritis Hereditary?

  Arthritis is a very uncomfortable health condition that includes a variety of inflammatory and non-inflammatory diseases such as osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gout and juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. The cause of arthritis can sometimes be infection, but there are also genetic...

• Can Arthritis Cause Back Pain?

  Yes. Arthritis is one of the major causes of back pain and can cause long-term effects in an individual. Back pain is a common problem which affects 4 out of 5 of us at some point. Back pain is a type of pain experienced mostly through the spine. Back pain can last for a short time, but there are...