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Vrije Universiteit, Brussels, Belgium.
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Editor’s note: Between 10% and 42% of patients who suffer a whiplash injury develop chronic pain in the neck, head, shoulder, or arm. As well as chronic pain, whiplash-associated disorders (WAD) may include depressive symptoms, fear, concentration difficulties, and fatigue. It seems likely that the biopsychosocial model of pain is the most appropriate for investigating which patients with whiplash injuries will develop chronic WAD. On this basis, these investigators identified 143 adult patients from hospital records who had suffered whiplash injuries within the 10–26 months preceding the study, excluding those who had fractures or who suffered recurrent whiplash injuries. These patients were then sent a set of questionnaires by post and asked to return them. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to investigate whether social support and personality traits are related to long-term functioning after whiplash injury.