Can measuring passive neck muscle stiffness in whiplash injury patients help detect false whiplash claims?
- PDF / 751,292 Bytes
- 9 Pages / 595 x 842 pts (A4) Page_size
- 64 Downloads / 200 Views
Wien Klin Wochenschr https://doi.org/10.1007/s00508-020-01631-y
Can measuring passive neck muscle stiffness in whiplash injury patients help detect false whiplash claims? Jure Aljinovic´ · Igor Barisi ˇ c´ · Ana Poljicanin ˇ · Sandra Kuzmici ˇ c´ · Katarina Vukojevic´ · Dijana Gugic´ Bokun · Tonko Vlak
Received: 4 July 2019 / Accepted: 3 March 2020 © Springer-Verlag GmbH Austria, part of Springer Nature 2020
Summary Background Whiplash injury of the cervical spine is the most common injury after a car accident and in 25% of patients it progresses into chronic neck pain. Aim of the study To investigate the difference in neck muscle stiffness using shear wave ultrasound elastography between subjects who suffered an uncomplicated whiplash injury and a control group. Possible recognition of patients who insist on physical therapy in order to support their false whiplash injury claims. Methods This study included 75 whiplash injury patients and 75 control subjects. Trapezius, splenius capitis and sternocleidomastoid muscles were examined by ultrasound shear wave elastography. Results Increased muscle stiffness was noticed in trapezius muscle bilaterally in the whiplash group when compared to the control group (p < 0.001;
right 57.47 ± 13.82 kPa vs. 87.84 ± 23.23 kPa; left 54.4 ± 12.68 kPa vs. 87.21 ± 26.47 kPa). Muscle stiffness in splenius capitis and sternocleidomastoid muscles was not suitable for analysis because of asymmetrical data distribution. Patients with less than 76 kPa of muscle stiffness in trapezius muscle are unlikely to belong in whiplash injury group (sensitivity 90% for right and 97% for left trapezius muscle, specificity 72% and 73%, respectively). Conclusion Patients measuring below 76 kPa of muscle stiffness in the trapezius muscle might have no whiplash injury. Further follow-up of the patients measuring higher than cut-off value might be beneficial for detecting patients with prolonged neck muscle spasm that can lead to chronic cervical pain syndrome. Keywords Elastography · Ultrasound · Trapezius · Shear wave · Neck pain
J. Aljinovi´c and I. Bariši´c equally contributed to this paper as first authors. J. Aljinovi´c () · A. Poljiˇcanin · S. Kuzmiˇci´c · T. Vlak Institute of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine with Rheumatology, University Hospital of Split, Šoltanska 1, 21000 Split, Croatia [email protected] I. Bariši´c Clinical Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology, University Hospital of Split, Split, Croatia K. Vukojevi´c Department of Anatomy, Histology and Embryology, University of Split School of Medicine, Split, Croatia D. Gugi´c Bokun Clinical Department of Pathology, Forensic Medicine and Cytology, University Hospital of Split, Split, Croatia J. Aljinovi´c · A. Poljiˇcanin Department of Health Studies, University of Split, Split, Croatia
K
Introduction Whiplash injury and whiplash-associated disorder are the most common injuries resulting from a car accident [1]. Recovery usually occurs within 3 months of the accident [2, 3]. Although most of the people rec
Data Loading...
