Acute neck sprain in 1 million people from automobile accidents per year.
Incidence approximately 4 per 1,000 persons.
An acceleration-deceleration mechanism of energy transfer to the neck which may result from rear-end or side impact.
It is generally not possible to identify the injury in the acute phase even with sophisticated imaging modalities.
MRI of the brain and neck of patients within 2 days of whiplash injury reveals no differences between patients and controls.
Neck pain reported by 15-60% of victims of motor vehicle accidents.
Long-lasting distress and poor clinical outcomes have been shown to be more closely related to stressful life events than to clinical findings.