Steven Tyler enters rehab, vows to perform with Aerosmith again

Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler has entered a rehab facility in Massachusetts to combat an addiction to prescription painkillers, the latest turn in a stormy year for the veteran rocker and his band.

"With the help of my family and team of medical professionals, I am taking responsibility for the management of my pain and am eager to be back on the stage and in the recording studio with my bandmates Joe Perry, Joey Kramer, Tom Hamilton and Brad Whitford," Tyler said in a statement released to the press.

"Over the past 10 years, Steven Tyler has suffered orthopedic injuries and has been in severe chronic pain which will require further surgeries on his knees and feet," said Dr. Brian McKeon in the statement, which was released from New England Baptist Hospital, where Tyler is undergoing treatment. "Steven's pain has progressed. The balance between managing his pain and avoiding addiction is tenuous and difficult, and his bravery in persevering through rigorous touring is admirable."

Tyler said he's eager to rejoin Aerosmith after he finishes his rehab stint.

"I love Aerosmith; I love performing as the lead singer in Aerosmith," he said. "I am grateful for all of the support and love I am receiving and am committed to getting things taken care of."

The 61-year-old singer fell of a stage during a performance in South Dakota this summer, breaking his left shoulder and forcing the band to cancel the remainder of its summer tour.

Guitarist Perry initially criticized Tyler, leading to an icy relationship between the singer and guitarist that appeared to shatter when Perry told a Las Vegas newspaper last month that Tyler had apparently quit the band following a concert in the Middle East.

Tyler appeared with Perry at the launch of the latter's solo tour in New York City several days later, denying that a rift existed between the two and insisting that he was still a member of Aerosmith in full standing.