Whiplash & Car Accidents
If you use any type of transportation, you run the risk of being involved in an accident. One of the most common injuries is whiplash. The US National Library of Medicine’s National Institutes of Health defines whiplash as “an acceleration–deceleration mechanism of energy transfer to the neck” that “may result in bony or soft-tissue injuries.”
In simpler terms, whiplash is bascially a neck muscle strain caused by the kind of violent, abrupt motions you experience in a car crash. The movement can tear tendons and neck muscles, resulting in inflammation, stiffness and pain. And it can happen whether you are stopped at a traffic light, traveling 5 miles per hour, or faster.
Whiplash Symptoms
Anyone who’s been in a car accident knows it’s one of the worst things that can happen. You aren’t expecting it, the cost of damage to your car and the pain that you feel. It can take months, sometimes even a few years, to recover from the damages caused by a car accident. Not everyone experiences the same physical symptoms. Some of the most common symptoms experienced are::
- Neck pain or stiffness
- Pain between the shoulder blades
- Blurred vision
- Pain in the arms, legs, feet or hands
- Headache
- Dizziness
- Difficulty swallowing
- Irritability
- Fatigue
- Low back pain and/or stiffness
- Nausea
- Shoulder pain
- Ringing in the ears
- Vertigo
- Numbness and tingling
- Pain in the jaw or face
At each phase, there is damage to bones of the spine (vertebrae), nerves, discs, muscles, and ligaments. This type of injury can be very pain and take a very long time to heal. At first, you may be not feel that anything has been injured. Your adrenaline is surging and you’re in a little bit of shock from the accident. A few weeks later, you may feel that your neck and upper back feel a little more stiff and achy. A few months later, and the damage to your spine takes a lot more effort to correct.
Patients who seek treatment as soon as possible feel better sooner. Their doctor will usually start with conservative treatment, prescribing anti-inflammatory medication, rest, ice, physiotherapy and chiropractic care. In fact, chiropractic care has been shown to be the most effective treatment in reducing the symptoms associated with whiplash injury.
After a few weeks of conservative therapy, your doctor will order diagnostic imaging (x-xray and MRI) studies of the injured parts of your spine. Often, it will show a bulging or herniated disc and give a better understanding of the symptoms that you are experiencing. Getting adjusted helps to reduce muscle spasm and pain.
We work with attorneys to help ensure that you get the treatment you need. If you don’t have an attorney to help you navigate the confusing aspects of a personal injury accident, Dr. DelMonte can recommend an attorney with whom she has worked before with other clients.
What should you do if you’ve been involved in a car accident?
The first thing you should do is notify a medical professional. Even going to an emergency room immediately after your accident to get your injuries documented by a physician, even if you don’t feel anything, is important. They will most likely take radiographs and discharge you with instructions to follow up with your doctor. It is important to understand that insurance companies can’t (or won’t) compensate you without proof of your injuries.
The next step is to contact a personal injury lawyer as soon as possible after a car accident. Your lawyer will advise you on any steps you need to take to advance your claim and protect your right to compensation. There are also limitation periods that apply to different types of claims, so if you wait too long to contact a lawyer or start treatment for your injuries, you may miss your opportunity to receive treatment or be compensated for pain and suffering.
Why should you see Dr. Del Monte for Whiplash Injury?
“Many of my patients are surprised when I tell them that I have been involved in 9 car accidents, all hit from behind and not one of them caused by me. I understand what happens when a patient experiences the trauma and pain of being involved in a car accident, from being extra vigilant to driving or being afraid of being in a car, to the impact of the pain has on social obligations. As I tell many of my patients, pain is an internal process and most people will look at you and not understand that you have intense, unrelenting pain, your muscles can’t hold up the weight of your own head, and simple tasks like grocery shopping or bathing take much longer to perform. As a clinician, I am an expert in the science of neurology and will explain to you what is causing your pain and what you can do at home to reduce your symptoms. As a doctor who has been in business for quite some time, I have developed professional relationships with other medical providers and attorneys so that your treatment and helping you to get better is the focus. You’ll have a team of experts in accidents all supporting your rehabilitation. I’ve gone through it multiple times, before I became a Chiropractic Doctor and after, and I understand the challenges it presents. My goal is to not only treat your symptoms but to allay your concerns about the uncertainty of the pain that you are experiencing.”