https://www5.fsco.gov.on.ca/AD/1870
…The question of neck spasm and indeed Ms. Levey’s pre-accident condition in general was taken up by Dr. Arthur Ameis in a report he wrote for Traders dated February 20, 1997. Dr. Ameis had some of the same materials that I had before me. For instance, he writes that the summary of the April 1995 report by Dr. Killian indicates habitual pre-morbid positioning and posturing. Having examined the report and the summary, I can find only a reference to “habitual positioning/posturing” but no reference to its being pre-morbid. He also states a strong position on the possible development of torticollis: “One can be certain that if the claimant was to develop torticollis acutely from the accident…it would have developed very rapidly…and definitely presenting at the time of the first medical visit.” Regarding that first medical visit, Dr. Ameis finds it of interest that “a 9-day latency occurs prior to the first post-trauma family doctor visit” (his emphasis — he does not refer to the fact that the emergency department suggested Ms. Levey follow up in seven days with her family doctor, nor that the accident happened on a Saturday evening and that Ms. Levey saw Dr. Liang on Monday, April 18 (1994). He refers to the mild nature of the accident, noting that the damage was $175 (the insurance appraisal sets out parts of $175, but it also shows that straightening of the automobile’s unibody structure required six hours of labour, and the total estimate before taxes comes to over $1,100) and that important secondary gains can be derived from such an “unexpected opportunity” to displace personal distress through misattribution onto the accident. He writes that, to Dr. Punthakee in March 1996, Ms. Levey was “exhibiting behaviours suggesting a spasmodic torticollis which apparently is related in time to the accident” (again, his emphasis).
…I find that Dr. Ameis’s report, in its constant suspicion of Ms. Levey, to be less than helpful. Furthermore, Dr. Paulseth and Dr. Oczkowski are both experts in the area of spasmodic torticollis. Accordingly, I prefer their evidence and find that the onset of spasmodic torticollis may be delayed after trauma. ….