Early mobilization and outcome in acute sprains of the neck
Three articles on PainSci cite McKinney 1989: 1. Does Massage Therapy Work? 2. Mobilize! 3. The Art of Rest
PainSci notes on McKinney 1989:
From the abstract: “Advice to mobilise in the early phase after neck injury reduces the number of patients with symptoms at two years and is superior to manipulative physiotherapy. Prolonged wearing of a collar is associated with persistence of symptoms.”
original abstract †Abstracts here may not perfectly match originals, for a variety of technical and practical reasons. Some abstacts are truncated for my purposes here, if they are particularly long-winded and unhelpful. I occasionally add clarifying notes. And I make some minor corrections.
OBJECTIVE: To assess the long term effect of early mobilisation exercises in patients with acute sprains of the neck after road accidents.
DESIGN: Single blind randomised prospective study of patients receiving physiotherapy, advice on mobilisation, or on an initial period of rest followed up after two years by postal questionnaire.
SETTING: Accident and emergency department in urban hospital.
PATIENTS: 247 Consecutive patients (mean age at injury 30.6 years) presenting within 48 hours after injury with no pre-existing disease of the neck or serious skeletal injury. Of these, 167 patients responded to the questionnaire; 77 who responded but had not completed their treatment or review course were included in the analysis as a fourth group (non-attenders).
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Presence of symptoms after two years.
RESULTS: Of the 167 patients (68%) responding, the percentage of patients still with symptoms was not significantly different in those receiving rest or physiotherapy (46%, 12/26 v 44%, 24/54), but that in those receiving advice on early mobilisation was significantly lower (23%, 11/48, p = 0.02). Of the 104 patients without symptoms, 94 (90%) recovered within six months and 62 (60%) within three months. Patients without symptoms who received advice or physiotherapy wore a collar for a significantly shorter time than those with persistent symptoms (mean duration 1.4 (SD 0.7) months v 2.8 (1.6) months, p = 0.005 and 1.6 (1.1) months v 1.8 (1.3) months, p = 0.006 respectively).
CONCLUSIONS: Advice to mobilise in the early phase after neck injury reduces the number of patients with symptoms at two years and is superior to manipulative physiotherapy. Prolonged wearing of a collar is associated with persistence of symptoms.
This page is part of the PainScience BIBLIOGRAPHY, which contains plain language summaries of thousands of scientific papers & others sources. It’s like a highly specialized blog. A few highlights:
- Exercise and education versus saline injections for knee osteoarthritis: a randomised controlled equivalence trial. Bandak 2022 Ann Rheum Dis.
- Association of Lumbar MRI Findings with Current and Future Back Pain in a Population-based Cohort Study. Kasch 2022 Spine (Phila Pa 1976).
- A double-blinded randomised controlled study of the value of sequential intravenous and oral magnesium therapy in patients with chronic low back pain with a neuropathic component. Yousef 2013 Anaesthesia.
- Is Neck Posture Subgroup in Late Adolescence a Risk Factor for Persistent Neck Pain in Young Adults? A Prospective Study. Richards 2021 Phys Ther.
- Sudden amnesia resulting in pain relief: the relationship between memory and pain. Choi 2007 Pain.