The association between exposure to a rear-end collision and future neck or shoulder pain:

Neck pain and disability following motor vehicle accidents?a cohort study

“…The findings in the present study are in accordance with a previous Swedish cohort study, which concluded that in subjects with reported whiplash injury there is a higher Mean ( .7) 10.6 (15.2) risk of neck or shoulder pain 7 years after the collision, as compared with subjects without reported whiplash injury [1]. Our results are contrary to the findings of two previous studies in which the authors stated that the prevalence of neck pain in a group of exposed subjects with whiplash-type injuries was the same as in atraumatic subjects [4,17].…”

Function in Patients With Cervical Radiculopathy or Chronic Whiplash-Associated Disorders Compared With Healthy Volunteers

“…2 In recent studies, up to 50% of WAD patients 3,4 and 30% to 100% of postsurgical CR patients 4-9 report personal suffering from prolonged symptoms, with persistent pain, disability, and reduced health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Physical function and treatment have been severely understudied both for CR patients scheduled for surgery 9,10 and for chronic WAD patients, 11 particularly for patients with verified neurological and musculoskeletal findings (WAD Grade III).…”

WAD – Criteria for Evaluation of Causality

“…Of these fi ve percent, only one tenth developed chronic neck problems. Another Swedish study [60], which included two control groups, showed almost a three-fold risk for residual neck-shoulder problems seven years after a rear-end impact compared with people not involved in car accidents. So, if Schrader et al [44], wanted to study the prognosis of WAD, they should have used a ten times greater cohort.…”