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Spinal cord injury — DipIMC MCQ

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EasyPre-Hospital Trauma ManagementSpinal cord injuryDipIMC

An older man has fallen down stairs and is seated at the bottom with neck pain and tingling in both hands. He is alert and breathing normally. What is the most appropriate immediate action?

Educational content. Not a substitute for clinical judgement or local policy.

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Correct answer: E — Ask him to keep still and maintain manual in-line stabilisation

Option E is correct because Suspected cervical cord injury requires movement minimisation and manual stabilisation while avoiding unnecessary repositioning. Option A is less appropriate because oxygen may be supportive, but it does not address the defining time-critical problem first; option D is less appropriate because vascular access is useful, but it should not delay the immediate priority. Option C is less appropriate because it is plausible in a different scenario but suboptimal for the features described; option B is less appropriate because delay would increase clinical risk. Clinical pearl: in DipIMC-style questions, the best answer is the intervention that changes outcome earliest in the pre-hospital phase.

Reference: JRCALC Guidelines