| You're in stop and go traffic on the freeway. You're | | | | several hours, eventually peaking at 72 hours |
| doing 40 mph, then see the brake lights ahead. You | | | | post-accident. This is why your neck feels very stiff |
| slow down. Just as you come to a complete stop, | | | | about 2-3 days after the accident. Victims also |
| you glance in your rear-view mirror. The person | | | | typically report fuzziness/ cloudiness in thinking, and |
| behind you is going too fast to stop in time. You hear | | | | fatigue. This is probably due to the stress to the |
| the screech of brakes, and brace for the impact: You | | | | nervous system-- brain, nerves-- from the forces of |
| hear a loud crash of metal, and feel a surge of | | | | the accident. |
| power push your stopped car forward. You feel your | | | | Some victims of low speed car collisions will go the |
| neck arc backwards and your torso sink into your | | | | emergency room to rule out serious injury. The |
| seat. A second later, the car stops, but the built- up | | | | on-duty physician will check for brain and spinal cord |
| energy in your neck causes it to flex forward, then | | | | damage by checking the pupillary reflex and asking |
| back again like a whip, and finally, silence. You have | | | | the victim to perform some dexterity tests. He/she |
| just experienced a cervical acceleration-deceleration | | | | will examine the internal ear for bleeding. X-rays may |
| injury, or whiplash. | | | | be taken to rule out vertebral fracture. If all check |
| The amount of damage to the spine from a whiplash | | | | out, the physician will prescribe pain medications, |
| accident is determined by several variables. First of all, | | | | muscle relaxants, and instructions to ice the painful |
| the mechanics of the crash: the velocity of the | | | | areas. |
| vehicles involved; their relative masses, the angle of | | | | Despite emergency room treatment, victims often |
| impact, the position of the seat headrest, whether or | | | | find persistent symptoms of neck and back pain, |
| not the seatbelt was worn, and the type of bumper. | | | | headaches, and sometimes numbness and tingling in |
| Secondly, the physical factors of the person injured: | | | | the upper extremities weeks after the accident. This |
| his or her height, the position of his neck at impact | | | | is most likely due to altered spinal function due to the |
| (turned, looking down?), the position of his arms; | | | | forces of the accident. This can affect nerve |
| whether or not he was aware of the impending | | | | function and delay soft tissue healing. It is at this |
| collision (did he brace before impact, or was he | | | | point that the victim will seek more intervention care, |
| relaxed?), and obviously, his state of health at the | | | | most often at a chiropractic office. A chiropractor will |
| time of the accident (history of neck problems?). | | | | typically have the whiplash victim fill out a |
| A surprising finding in whiplash research is that | | | | questionnaire that will extract the fine details of the |
| oftentimes, the speed of the colliding car is not | | | | accident-- speeds, forces, angle of collision, body |
| always directly proportional to the amount of injury | | | | positioning at the time of collision, and so-on. This can |
| sustained. One would think that, the faster the car | | | | provide useful information of the nature of the injury. |
| was going, the stronger the whiplash force | | | | Motion x-rays of the neck may be taken (flexion, |
| generated, and thus, the more injury. But that is not | | | | extension) not only to rule out fracture, but to |
| the case. One possible explanation has to do with | | | | identify vertebral dyskinesia, or abnormal joint |
| energy absorption. You see, a car body will deform | | | | coupling (movement). An orthopedic and neurological |
| (dent) at a certain pounds per square inch force. | | | | exam will be done to assess soft tissue structures, |
| When a car deforms from a collision, it absorbs some | | | | joint function, and nerve function (cranial nerves, |
| of the kinetic energy. If a car is subject to a force | | | | nerve roots, and peripheral nerves). Of course, the |
| that is not sufficient to cause a deformation but | | | | patient's medical history will be taken. Of particular |
| strong enough to generate significant g-forces to the | | | | interest will be history of previous major trauma, |
| neck, then it's possible for a lower speed collision to | | | | surgical implants, bone disease, soft tissue disease, |
| cause more injury than a higher speed collision. Think | | | | history of cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. Then, |
| about race cars: they are designed around this | | | | assuming there are no contraindications to |
| concept: upon colliding with another car or the | | | | chiropractic care, a treatment plan will be prescribed. |
| racetrack wall, a race car will disintegrate (sections will | | | | This will typically consist of spinal manipulation to |
| fly off, rather than stay with the frame). If race cars | | | | restore vertebral alignment and movement; modalities |
| were not designed to disintegrate upon collision, the | | | | to address acute symptoms, and perhaps massage |
| drivers would sustain very serious injury as they | | | | therapy to reduce scar tissue formation and move |
| would absorb most of the kinetic energy of the | | | | out swelling and stagnant lymph. Treatment may be |
| crash. | | | | done over several weeks to months, depending on |
| Whiplash injuries result in soft tissue damage (sprains | | | | the extent of the injuries. The last phase will focus |
| and strains of ligament, fascia, tendons, and muscles) | | | | on rehabilitation, or strengthening and coordination |
| and vertebral misalignments. The more serious variety | | | | exercises to retrain weakened muscles and nerves. |
| can result in ligament rupture, nerve damage, | | | | The bottom line: if you were injured in a car accident |
| vertebral fractures, ruptured discs, spinal cord injury, | | | | and have persistent or residual symptoms such as |
| hematomas (blood pooling at the surface of the | | | | headaches, neck pain, extremity numbness, or back |
| brain), concussion, and temporomandibular joint (TMJ) | | | | pain, consult with a chiropractor. Chiropractic |
| injury. Shortly after a typical low speed rear-ender | | | | treatment can be very effective in treating and |
| car collision, the victim will first feel a sense of shock. | | | | rehabilitating whiplash injuries. |
| The neck will typically not hurt immediately. As the | | | | For a concise synopsis of chiropractic treatment, visit |
| injured soft tissues slowly release inflammatory | | | | the Squidoo page, Chiropractic Treatment: What You |
| products (swelling), the internal pressure in the neck | | | | Should Know. |
| joints and muscles increases. This will continue for | | | | |