Association Between Cervical Lordosis Restoration and Clinical Recovery Following a Motor Vehicle Collision: A...

We describe the clinical and radiographic outcomes of a patient presenting with post‑traumatic loss of cervical lordosis following a motor vehicle collision (MVC). A 27‑year‑old man reported to a spine rehabilitation clinic complaining of neck pain, low back pain, and headaches following an MVC one month prior. The patient scored moderate disability: 36% and 34% on the neck and headache indices, respectively. Radiograph screening of the cervical spine demonstrated severe anterior head translation (AHT) of 59.9 mm (ideal = 0 mm), complete loss of the cervical lordosis (C2-C7 absolute rotation angle = -1.6°; ideal = -42°), and a sharp reversal of the C5-C6 intersegmental angle of +5.9° (ideal = -8.0°). Chiropractic BioPhysics® (CBP®) (Chiropractic BioPhysics Seminars, Eagle, ID, USA) treatment aimed at restoring cervical lordosis and sagittal balance was performed over 6.5 months with a 17-month follow-up. Symptomatic improvement progressed to being negligible over the 6.5-month treatment duration. At the final follow-up, radiographic parameters improved by 38 mm in AHT, 17° in lordosis, and 10.5° in the C5-C6 segmental kyphosis. This case illustrates that meaningful structural correction is achievable and may coincide with profound and sustained clinical recovery, supporting further investigation into sagittal alignment restoration as a central therapeutic objective in patients suffering from cranio-cervical symptoms following an MVC.