Consistent evidence was found to support the use of ' red flags ' to screen for serious pathologies , judicious use of imaging through clinical decision rule application and promotion of functional exercise coupled with advice and reassurance .
Neck pain and whiplash injuries are a common presentation to the ED , and a frequent cause of disability globally .
This rapid review investigated best practice for the assessment and management of musculoskeletal neck pain in the ED .
Seniority of the first-treating doctor does not influence the outcome of acute whiplash injury: a prospective cohort study
The aim of the prospect i ve cohort study was to investigate the outcome of acute whiplash injury first treated either by junior doctors ( JD ) [ ≤3 postgraduate years ( PGY ) ] or more experienced doctors ( MED ) ( > 3 PGY ) . At baseline , crash-related data and health parameters including the SF36 were evaluated in whiplash patients ( WP ) , who fulfilled criteria for whiplash-associated disorders grade I – II and presented up to 48 h after motor vehicle accident to our Emergency Department . 81 WP were recruited and treated by either one of 14 JD ( 35 WP ) or one of 22 MED ( 46 WP ) . The follow-up examination included the course of pain intensity [ numeric rating scale ( NRS ) 0–10 ] by the use of a 28 days-pain-diary  and the incidence of symptoms ( st and ardized-telephone-interview at 1 , 3 , and 6 months post trauma ) in terms of neck pain NRS > 2 , analgesic medication , work-off , and utilization of further medical services as well as SF36 evaluated at the end of the study . Although the entry population seemed similar , all outcome parameters were comparable between the JD- and MED-group ( p > 0.05 ) . Therefore , we conclude that seniority of the first-treating physician does not influence the outcome of acute whiplash injury
Consistent evidence was found to support the use of ' red flags ' to screen for serious pathologies , judicious use of imaging through clinical decision rule application and promotion of functional exercise coupled with advice and reassurance .
Neck pain and whiplash injuries are a common presentation to the ED , and a frequent cause of disability globally .
This rapid review investigated best practice for the assessment and management of musculoskeletal neck pain in the ED .