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You can get whiplash if your head is suddenly jolted backward and forward in a whiplike movement. This type of neck injury often happens in car crashes. Your neck muscles and ligaments (the strands of tissue that hold your bones together) stretch more than normal and may be sprained.

Being in a car crash is a common way of getting whiplash. You may have been in a car that was hit from behind by another car.¹ But you can also get whiplash if your car is hit from the side or from the front. Even slow bumps to your car can cause enough whipping to hurt your neck.

You can also get whiplash from a sports injury. Or you might jolt your neck when you trip or fall, but this is a less common cause.

Some people get a severe whiplash injury that needs to be treated in the hospital.² Sometimes the spine or spinal cord gets damaged, but this isn't common. Here we look at common whiplash to neck muscles, not at whiplash that affects the spine or spinal cord.

Your doctor can rule out more serious reasons for your pain and stiffness by examining your neck. The doctor may also order some tests.¹ For example, you might have an X-ray of your neck, a CT scan or an MRI scan. Sometimes doctors do blood tests to look for inflammation or more serious causes for neck pain.

This information is for educational use only, and is not a substitute for prompt professional medical advice. Readers should always consult a physician or other professional for advice and treatment. ©BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2008. All rights reserved.