Whiplash: Minimizing the Injury

Injuries from motor vehicle accidents are frequently life changing, and not in a positive way. Even minor collisions can result in chronic and ongoing problems to the muscular and skeletal systems. Many patients who sustain whiplash injuries simply never return to their level of pre-accident comfort and mobility. There have been a number of studies to the contrary but most of these have used data received from insurance claims deemed to be closed. The thinking is that if the claim is closed, the patient must be better. More often, the patient simply has become frustrated by the lack of effective treatment and continuous hassle from their insurance company. Closure of a case often reflects that the patient has thrown in the towel and merely accepted whatever residual impairments they still suffer.

In a rear-end traffic mishap with an impact speed of as low as 4 MPH, neck and back injuries can result. In the old days, auto insurers used to scoff at people claiming pain and disability when the damage to their vehicles was minimal. However, many crash test studies have shown conclusively that there is frequently no correlation between these 2 factors.

Whiplash and related spinal injuries are caused from acceleration or deceleration of the neck and spine. The most frequent scenario is an impact from the rear, usually while stopped at a traffic light or while waiting to turn left. Whiplash accounts for 60-70 percent of all car accident injuries. In Canada, there are over 200,000 car accidents a year. In the US, this figure is probably 2 million.

It is easy to understand how vulnerable one’s neck is to the traumatic stresses from motor vehicle accidents. Given that your head weighs 10 pounds, the forward momentum imparted to it in a rear-end or head-on collision simply overwhelms the controlling ability of the neck muscles. The first event that happens in a rear impact is that the spine lengthens and the patient rises up out of his/her seat. The lower back is propelled forward and the neck and head backward. The sudden lengthening of the front neck muscles results in a reflexive contraction, much like tapping the knee with a small hammer causes the lower leg to jerk. This contraction in the neck is violent and not under conscious control and it flings the head forward, often leaving a hat, toupee or glasses behind. Striking the forehead against the steering wheel is a common occurrence.

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