Free DHA Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation mock test
12 original exam-style questions from our Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation bank, timed at the exam’s own pace, scored against the 65% DHA pass mark. They span 7 of the 8 blueprint domains, so you will see exactly where you are weakest - free, no sign-up.
Sit 12 original exam-style questions at real exam pace
These are 12 original questions taken from our Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation bank, spread across 7 of the 8 domains of the published blueprint. You get 72 seconds per question, which is exactly the pace of the real PHY5261 exam (14 minutes for 12). At the end you will see which domains you are weakest in, and the full worked reasoning for every question.
- 12
- questions
- 14:24
- time limit
- 65%
- DHA pass mark
A short diagnostic cannot predict whether you will pass - only the real exam does that. It will show you, honestly, where you currently stand.
What the real Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation licensing exam looks like
Candidates for a Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation licence in the UAE sit a computer-based multiple-choice examination - DHA exam code PHY5261, delivered through Prometric for DHA, MOHAP and SHA, and through Pearson VUE for DOH Abu Dhabi. The DHA pass mark is 65% (DHA CBT Guideline, Sep 2026); other authorities set their own, so confirm yours before booking. The result is reported to you as pass or fail only - your score is never released.
Pass marks at a glance: DHA exam codes and pass marks for all written exams in one sourced table.
The paper is built to a published blueprint, which is why a domain-by-domain diagnostic is more useful than a raw percentage. Your questions above were drawn from across Amputation, Prosthetics and Orthotics, Electrodiagnostic Medicine, Rehabilitation Principles, Cardiopulmonary Rehab, Ethics and Safety, Spasticity, Pharmacology and Interventional Procedures and 3 more - the same areas the real paper weights.
Before you can book the exam at all you need Dataflow primary source verification of your degree, licence and experience, which typically runs several weeks. Candidates routinely underestimate this and end up sitting the exam sooner after study than they planned. Check where you stand with our free eligibility checker or confirm whether your title even requires an exam using the Prometric exam checker.
You get three attempts in total across all UAE authorities - not three each - under the Unified Professional Qualification Requirements. At roughly AED 1,030 per attempt, plus the licensing delay each failure adds to your visa and start date, the cost of going in underprepared is not really the exam fee.
What is on the Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation exam: the full blueprint
The published blueprint splits into 8 domains and 53 testable sub-topics. The diagnostic above samples across them, which is why its breakdown maps onto the structure the real paper is built from.
- Stroke and Brain Injury Rehabilitation~20%8 topics
- Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation~15%7 topics
- Musculoskeletal, Spine and Pain Medicine~18%8 topics
- Electrodiagnostic Medicine~12%6 topics
- Amputation, Prosthetics and Orthotics~10%6 topics
- Paediatric and Neuromuscular Rehabilitation~8%6 topics
- Spasticity, Pharmacology and Interventional Procedures~9%6 topics
- Rehabilitation Principles, Cardiopulmonary Rehab, Ethics and Safety~8%6 topics
- Questions
- 150 multiple-choice (DHA PHY5261)
- Duration
- 3 hours, including registration
- DHA pass mark
- 65% - reported as pass or fail only
Figures for the DHA exam, from the DHA CBT Guideline, Sep 2026. DOH, MOHAP, SCFHS, QCHP, NHRA and OMSB set their own length, timing and pass mark. See the DHA exam guide and pass marks for every DHA exam.
A worked Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation exam question
Every question in the diagnostic and in the paid bank is written to this standard: a clinical stem, four plausible options and the reasoning for the answer, with its source.
Amputation, Prosthetics and Orthotics
On day 2 after a transtibial amputation, a nurse places a pillow under the patient's knee for comfort. What is the main concern with this practice?
- ARisk of knee flexion contractureCorrect
- BRisk of phantom limb pain
- CRisk of hip abduction contracture
- DRisk of wound dehiscence
Why: A pillow under the knee holds the residual limb in flexion and promotes knee flexion contracture, which seriously hinders prosthetic fitting. The knee should be kept extended, for example with a residual limb board.
Source: Braddom's Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 6th ed.
Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation sample questions with answers
4 more original exam-style Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation questions, worked in full. They are not real or recalled exam questions, and none of them is in the diagnostic above, so sit that first if you have not.
Question 1 · Amputation, Prosthetics and Orthotics
Which unilateral amputation level and cause is associated with the greatest increase in energy expenditure during prosthetic walking?
- ATraumatic transtibial
- BSyme ankle disarticulation
- CVascular transtibial
- DVascular transfemoral
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: D. Vascular transfemoral
Energy cost rises with more proximal levels, and vascular amputees have higher costs than traumatic amputees at the same level, so vascular transfemoral is the highest of these. Syme amputation preserves most limb length and has the lowest cost.
Reference: Waters RL et al. J Bone Joint Surg Am 1976 (energy cost of amputee gait)
Question 2 · Electrodiagnostic Medicine
A nerve conduction study of the ulnar nerve shows a compound muscle action potential amplitude of 8 mV at the wrist and 3 mV just above the elbow without significant temporal dispersion. What does this indicate?
- AConduction block in the elbow segment
- BAxonal loss distal to the wrist
- CNormal amplitude variation
- DA sensory neuronopathy
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A. Conduction block in the elbow segment
A drop in CMAP amplitude of more than 50% between distal and proximal stimulation sites without significant temporal dispersion indicates focal conduction block, typical of demyelination at the elbow. Distal axonal loss would lower amplitude equally at all stimulation sites.
Reference: Preston and Shapiro, Electromyography and Neuromuscular Disorders, 4th ed.
Question 3 · Musculoskeletal, Spine and Pain Medicine
A 45-year-old man with known L4-L5 disc prolapse develops bilateral sciatica, perineal numbness and difficulty initiating urination over 24 hours. What is the most appropriate next step?
- AIncrease analgesia and review in 2 weeks
- BArrange outpatient physiotherapy
- CRequest a nerve conduction study
- DEmergency MRI and urgent spinal surgical referral
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: D. Emergency MRI and urgent spinal surgical referral
Bilateral sciatica, saddle anaesthesia and new urinary dysfunction are features of cauda equina syndrome, which requires emergency MRI and surgical decompression. Delay risks permanent bladder, bowel and sexual dysfunction.
Reference: NICE Guideline NG59: Low Back Pain and Sciatica in Over 16s
Question 4 · Musculoskeletal, Spine and Pain Medicine
A 64-year-old woman with BMI 32 kg/m2 has symptomatic medial knee osteoarthritis. Which intervention is a core first-line treatment?
- AStructured exercise and weight loss
- BIntra-articular hyaluronic acid
- CArthroscopic debridement
- DLong-term oral opioids
Show answer and explanation
Correct answer: A. Structured exercise and weight loss
Structured land-based exercise and weight management are core treatments for knee osteoarthritis in all major guidelines. Arthroscopic debridement is not recommended for osteoarthritis, and hyaluronic acid has limited benefit.
Reference: OARSI Guidelines for Non-surgical Management of Knee, Hip and Polyarticular OA 2019
How to use this diagnostic properly
- 1Sit it cold, once. Do not look anything up. A diagnostic you help yourself through tells you nothing. The number you get is only useful if it is honest.
- 2Read every rationale - especially the ones you got right. Getting a question right by elimination is not the same as knowing it. The worked reasoning is free above, whether or not you buy anything.
- 3Work weakest domain first. The breakdown orders your domains worst-first for exactly this reason. Studying what you are already good at feels productive and moves nothing.
- 4Re-sit under full exam conditions later. The real paper is far longer than this and stamina matters. Full-length timed papers are what the paid bank is for.