Prevalence of Cervicalgia Following Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Among Active-Duty Service Members: Implications for Concussion Assessment.

OBJECTIVES

To (1) determine the prevalence of cervicalgia within 90 days of a mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) among active-duty service members, and (2) describe associated demographic and clinical characteristics relevant to physical therapy management.

DESIGN

Retrospective cohort study.

METHODS

Deidentified personnel and medical encounter data from the Military Assessment and Readiness System (2016-2024) were analyzed. Service members were identified using ICD-10 (International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision) codes for initial encounter of mTBI. Cervicalgia (M54.2) was classified as pre-existing (≤90 days pre-mTBI) or incident (≤90 days post-mTBI). Prevalence and clinical characteristics were compared by cervicalgia.

RESULTS

Among 71 176 service members diagnosed with mTBI, 18.4% had cervicalgia within 90 days of injury (7.3% pre-existing; 11.1% incident). Cervicalgia clustered temporally around mTBI (mean: 29 days preinjury, 24 days postinjury). Compared with those without cervicalgia, affected service members had a higher prevalence of posttraumatic headache (16.1% vs 6.2%) and postconcussion syndrome (18.8% vs 11.0%), longer time in service, and greater deployment exposure.

CONCLUSION

Nearly 1 in 5 service members diagnosed with mTBI had cervicalgia documented in close temporal proximity to injury. Cervicalgia was associated with greater postconcussive symptom burden. JOSPT Open 2026;4(3):297-303. Epub 4 May 2026. doi:10.2519/josptopen.2026.0219.