Assessing whiplash recovery--the Whiplash Disability Questionnaire.

BACKGROUND

General practitioners often need to track outcomes of whiplash patients, and a disability questionnaire may be useful.

METHODS

Whiplash patients who attended primary care clinics in Edmonton, Canada were interviewed 3 months postcollision. Subjects were asked a global recovery question: "Do you feel you have recovered fully from your accident injuries?" Subjects then completed the Whiplash Disability Questionnaire (WDQ).

RESULTS

A total of 131 subjects participated. Of these, 52 (39.7%) reported that they felt they had recovered. Those who reported complete recovery had a mean WDQ score of 2.5 and those who reported they had not recovered had a mean WDQ score of 29.9. All who responded "yes" to the recovery question had a WDQ score below 13, while all those responding "no" to the recovery question had a WDQ score of 13 or more.

DISCUSSION

The WDQ as an outcome measure may be useful in clinical practice.