Neck injuries as a reconstructive parameter in car-to-pedestrian accidents

The study has assessed the usefulness of injuries to the ligamentous, muscular and vascular neck structures for deducing about the presumable location of a pedestrian in relation to a motor vehicle at the moment of collision. The localisation of haemorrhagic suffusions in the lower insertions of the scalene (mainly) and sternocleidomastoid muscles has shown a correlation with the direction of the inertia force. No correlation has been observed between the direction of impact and damages to the cervical vascular bundles and the localisation of haemorrhagic suffusions in the upper insertions of the nape muscles. In some cases, injuries to the ligaments of the cervical vertebrae made up the complex characteristic of the direction of acting forces. The injuries of soft tissues and ligaments can, thus, facilitate the deductions about the direction of impact. However, the type of a car involved in the accident and the possibility that these injuries resulted from direct head or neck trauma should be considered.