TY - JOUR
PY - 2018//
TI - Whiplash injury results in sustained impairments of cervical muscle function: a one-year prospective, controlled study
JO - Journal of rehabilitation medicine
A1 - Krogh, Søren
A1 - Kasch, Helge
SP - 548
EP - 555
VL - 50
IS - 6
N2 - OBJECTIVE: To investigate the temporal development of neck muscle function following whiplash injuries.
DESIGN: A 1-year prospective, controlled observational study. SUBJECTS: A total of 141 individuals exposed to whiplash injury due to rear-end vehicle collisions and 40 age- and sex-matched controls with acute ankle distortion.
METHODS: Neck muscle strength and endurance during cervical flexion and extension were measured at 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months and 1 year after injury.
RESULTS: Notable reductions (23-30%) of neck strength in both directions were seen for whiplash-exposed subjects at all time points, compared with controls. Also, extensor endurance was reduced at 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months* and 1 year* (*non-significant). Within the whiplash group, non-recovered individuals (individuals who had not returned to pre-injury work capacity at one year) displayed ~50% reductions in cervical strength in both directions at all time points, compared with recovered whiplash individuals.
CONCLUSION: Cervical muscular functioning is impaired for at least one year after whiplash injury, well beyond the time course of recovery of neck mobility and pain sensations. In whiplash-exposed individuals, non-recovery is associated with considerable muscular weakness. There is a need for increased clinical focus on early neck function after whiplash injury.
Language: en
LA - en SN - 1650-1977 UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.2340/16501977-2348 ID - ref1 ER -