ABSTRACT
This chapter highlights the various research methods which have been used to understand cervical spine injury mechanisms, including spinal tissue material characterisation, cadaveric experiments and computational modelling. Cervical spine injury, often referred as neck injury, is a common problem with a wide range of severities from minor ligamentous injury to most severe spinal cord injuries that are sustained in impact-related scenarios in both civilian and military contexts. Cervical spine injury can have long-lasting devastating effects such as neck pain and stiffness, occipital headache, cognitive function loss, numbness of upper limbs and even permanent disability to the injured individuals. Cervical spine injury does not only account for a high mortality rate, but the chance of a permanent disability is also high. This poses a serious public health problem with significant social and economic costs. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that the lifetime cost for a person injured with a cervical spine injury in US is approximately 4.6 million US dollars.
