Prognosis

Mortality from traumatic spinal cord injury is up to 6.18%.[8]​ Patients with ankylosing spondylitis are at particularly high risk of complications and death following spinal injuries.[22]

Most patients with simple neck sprain injury (i.e., injury to the neck where there has been no demonstrable bony injury or unstable ligamentous injury) or whiplash will recover completely in a matter of days to weeks. Approximately one third of patients will experience persistent symptoms, often in the absence of readily observed pathology (such as disc herniation). A history of neck injury in motor vehicle collision is a risk factor for developing future neck pain.[37] Patients with a prior whiplash injury, or with pre-existing neck or head pain, have been found to have a poorer prognosis after a second injury.[20][38]​ Recovery is highly variable, and it is difficult to determine which patients will be least likely to recover within the first 3 months of injury.[39] There are no validated algorithms for predicting poor recovery from whiplash injury,[40] although there is some indication that patients who experience upper extremity radiculopathy and an early decrease in global pain thresholds (central nervous system sensitisation signs) are more likely to have persistent pain.[41][42]

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