Which of the following is NOT true regarding cervical whiplash injury?

• A. This occurs after a traumatic event.
• B. It may be accompanied by severe pain, spasm.
• C. Is identifiable on MRI or CT, but not X-ray.
• D. Occipital pain and headache can occur.

Answer: (C)

Whiplash is a neck injury that results from a sudden acceleration–deceleration event, and the diagnosis is mainly clinical: patients have neck pain, stiffness, sometimes muscle spasm, and may develop headaches or occipital pain after the trauma. Imaging is used to rule out fractures or other serious injuries, not to confirm whiplash itself. Many people with whiplash have normal X-rays, and MRI or CT can show nonspecific soft-tissue or disc findings or may be unrevealing. There isn’t a definitive imaging test for whiplash, and the presence or absence of MRI/CT findings doesn’t reliably establish the diagnosis. Therefore the statement that it is identifiable on MRI or CT but not X-ray is not true. The other statements—occurring after a traumatic event, with severe pain and spasm, and possible occipital pain and headache—fit typical clinical features.