ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a case study of a 74-year-old woman with a history of type 2 diabetes who is presented to the Emergency Department after a road traffic accident. In any patient where trauma is involved, management should proceed in accordance with Advanced Trauma Life Support (ATLS) guidelines. When clearing the patient clinically, an accurate assessment of neck pain and focal motor deficits with passive and active range of movements will need to be demonstrated. For this, the patient will need to be free from any potential distractors and confounders. In a patient where a clinical exam is possible, it is prudent to perform serial examinations to monitor for any potential epidural haematoma causing cord compression. This lady has diabetes, which could cause peripheral neuropathy and explain her hand numbness. Her gait instability and urinary incontinence could suggest a myelopathy further down in the thoracic or lumbar spine.
