Q&A with Postdoctoral Research Fellow Muhammad Uzair Siddique

Muhammad Uzair Siddique, MBBS, is an ECFMG-certified postdoctoral research fellow working with physiatrist, Charles Odonkor, MD, MA, in the section of physical medicine & rehabilitation (PM&R) with Yale’s Department of Orthopaedics & Rehabilitation.

As part of this fellowship, he will be developing digital biomarkers for pain and mobility, evaluating patient selection and outcomes for neuromodulatory therapies that regulate or modulate the activity of the nervous system, and contributing to study operations. His long-term goal is a clinician-scientist career in PM&R integrating interventional pain with research to advance personalized, technology-enabled rehabilitation.

Prior to Yale, Siddique served as a clinical extern in the United Kingdom’s National Health Service and gained experience in U.S. health systems at SUNY Downstate, the University of Wisconsin, and Geisinger Health.

I earned my medical degree in 2023 from King Edward Medical University, Pakistan, one of the oldest medical schools in South Asia, founded in 1860. Training in a resource-limited setting motivated me to focus on what actually improves function for patients and how to measure it. I’ve since seen care in three different health systems: Pakistan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, which has deepened my interest in practical and technology enabled rehabilitation. This naturally led me to Yale to work with Dr. Odonkor at the intersection of neuromodulation, wearables, and patient-centered outcomes. It feels like the right place to turn careful measurements into better decisions for patients.

I’ll be focusing on neuromodulation and digital health, building and validating wearable markers of pain and mobility, studying real-world outcomes, and patient selection for neuromodulation. Day-to-day, I will assist with literature reviews, protocol support, data extraction and curation from the electronic health record, and writing abstracts and manuscripts. The work will combine clinic-embedded studies with data science in close collaboration with Dr. Odonkor.

My motivation is both personal and practical. In my family, my father’s severe knee osteoarthritis and my grandmother’s stroke changed what everyday life looked like, and I saw how the right team and goals can restore independence. Growing up in Pakistan, I also witnessed the limitations of access to PM&R, which led me to value scalable, multidisciplinary approaches. PM&R fits that vision and complements orthopaedics by focusing on function over time.

I am working toward a clinician-investigator career track in PM&R with a focus on interventional pain and research. My goal is a procedural practice paired with a research program that develops pragmatic trials to personalize pain care. Working with Dr. Odonkor has sharpened my interest in physical medicine and value-based pain management. Near term, I plan to pursue PM&R residency, then an interventional pain and spine fellowship.

I’m a lifelong film and TV fan who grew up on Hollywood and American cinema. The Godfather is my comfort classic, and Breaking Bad is my gold standard for long-form storytelling. I’m the friend who can quote scenes, debate character arcs, and still enjoy the popcorn.