Cervical spine clearance in adults following blunt trauma: a national survey across major trauma centres in England

Multidetector CT is the preferred initial imaging technique across most major trauma centres in England when blunt cervical spine trauma is suspected. There is widespread reliance on MRI to clear the cervical spine in both alert and obtunded patients, if initial CT imaging is normal and there is no focal neurology on clinical assessment. This calls for greater awareness of the reliability of a high-quality normal multidetector CT examination in clearing the cervical spine in the absence of focal neurology.