Whiplash is a non-medical term describing a range of injuries to the neck caused by or related to a sudden distortion of the neck associated with extension.

Whiplash is most commonly associated with motor vehicle accidents, usually when the vehicle has been hit in the rear; however, the injury can be sustained in many other ways, including falls from stools, bicycles or horses. It stands out as one of the main injuries covered by the car insurers. Over 3 million Americans a year suffer a whiplash-causing accident. Surprisingly, most rear impact car accidents that cause whiplash occur at speeds below 12 mph. In low speed rear impact crashes, the reported risk of injury is 35 to 68% despite most cars experiencing no structural damage at such speeds.

Symptoms reported by whiplash sufferers include: pain and aching to the neck and back, referred pain to the shoulders, sensory disturbance (such as pins and needles) to the arms & legs and headaches. Symptoms can appear directly after the injury, but often are not felt until days afterwards. Whiplash is usually confined to the spinal cord, and the most common areas of the spinal cord affected by whiplash are the neck, and the mid-back (middle of the spine).