Whiplash
What is whiplash?
Whiplash is a term used to describe a neck injury caused by a sudden movement of the head forwards, backwards or sideways. It often occurs after a sudden impact such as a road traffic accident. The vigorous movement of the head damages the ligaments, tendons joints and sometimes the nerves in the neck.
What are the Symptoms?
Common symptoms of whiplash include: neck pain and stiffness, tenderness over the neck muscles, reduced and painful neck movements and headaches. After an accident, the symptoms often take 6-12 hours to develop. The neck pain and stiffness is often worse the day after the injury and may get worse for several days after. In more sever cases of whiplash people will experience shooting pain down 1 or both arms.
Causes of whiplash
Road accidents are the main cause of whiplash, but it can also occur following: a sudden blow to the head – for example, during contact sports such as boxing or rugby or a slip or fall where the head is suddenly and violently jolted backwards.
Diagnosing Whiplash
Whiplash can usually be diagnosed from a description of your symptoms. Tests and scans are not usually required. Visit your Chiropractor if you have recently had a road accident or a sudden fall and are experiencing pain and stiffness in your neck. Your Chiropractor will ask about your symptoms and details of how the injury happened. They will also examine your neck and assess the magnitude of injury.
Whiplash Treatment
With treatment whiplash symptoms are normal self limiting, which means they will go away. Occasionally symptoms become chronic and last longer then 6 months. It is important to seek treatment to help your body heal. Chiropractors will help re-align the joints of the neck, will provide therapy for the injured muscles and will give stretches and exercises to help you get your strength back.
Whiplash Complications
Sometimes whiplash can be very serious. Depending on how bad the accident was and what position your head was in as the accident happened it is possible to fracture and dislocate bones and joints in your neck. This is a medical emergency, it is always a good idea to get taken to the hospital after a bad accident to rule these types of injuries out.
Recovering from Whiplash
The length of time it will take to recover from whiplash will depend on how severely your neck has been injured. There are varying degrees of whiplash from grade 1 which is minor to grad 4 which is very serious. It may take a few weeks if the ligaments and tendons in your neck are only slightly damaged. However, in severe cases, whiplash and whiplash-associated injuries can last several months or over a year.
For more information contact Dr. Jen at Georgina Chiropractic in Keswick 289-926-0026