In most cases this injury will not have been caused by a car accident however there is a significant proportion that is a direct result of motor vehicle collisions. Road traffic accidents are a major cause of traumatic injury and represent more than half of all cases handled by personal injury solicitors. If you have been injured in a car accident and you want to make a compensation claim for personal injury and loss just complete the contact form, email our offices or use the solicitor’s helpline. Our car accident compensation claim solicitors offer free advice without further obligation. If we deal with your claim it will be on a no win no fee basis, compensation is paid in full and you do not have to fund or finance your car accident compensation claim.
Whiplash is actually a non-medical term first coined in 1928 and, in medical terms is called flexion extension injury to the neck or soft tissue cervical hyperextension injury. It is an injury that involves hyperflexion and hyperextension of the neck during a motor vehicle accident, fall, assault, or sporting activities. Doctors also call this a cervical sprain or cervical sprain; it doesn’t involve the bones of the neck and there is usually no injury to the spinal cord—at least one that is lasting in nature.
The most frequent cause of a whiplash injury is a motor vehicle accident. Speeds as low as fifteen miles per hour can cause a significant whiplash injury and wearing a seat belt does not make any difference in whether or not you get whiplash. Contact sports injuries are related to whiplash injuries in some cases. Blows to the head from a falling object can yield a whiplash injury. Non-acute causes of whiplash injuries are repetitive stress injuries or chronic strain on the neck. Child abuse, such as shaken baby syndrome, can cause a whiplash injury, among other injuries. The spinal cord can be damaged in such cases.
Symptoms of whiplash injury include having pain in the neck, swelling of the muscles and ligaments around the neck, tenderness along the back of the neck, muscle spasms that tilt the neck to one side, headache, difficulty moving the neck or pain that shoots from the neck to the shoulder or to the arm on one or both sides of the body.
Tests for whiplash injury are usually done in the emergency room with a patient who has a rigid cervical collar placed around their neck. The emergency physician carefully removes the collar if the patient is comfortable with that and examines the back of the neck. X-rays are often done to make sure that there is no bony involvement. There is often over-straightening of the neck due to spasms of the muscles but it can also be due to being trapped in the cervical collar. Level of consciousness is assessed as is the strength of the extremities, including the grip strength and the strength of the feet. The doctor also makes sure the patient is not on drugs or intoxicated, which can affect the level of pain they are feeling with regard to the neck. Tenderness, range of motion and swelling of the neck are assessed by the emergency or family practice physician. Sensation of the extremities is checked. Reflexes are examined. The collar usually stays in place until the x-rays are cleared as normal. The doctor looks for external signs of trauma, including cuts, abrasions or bruising after the cervical collar is removed.
If there are any questions about bony involvement that aren’t answered by a simple x-ray, the individual might have a CT scan or MRI scan of the neck. These tests can also show the muscles and any swelling or tearing of the muscles may sometimes be seen.
Mild whiplash can be treated at home. You can wear a soft cervical collar and take nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medication to relieve pain and control inflammation. Ice should be applied for twenty minutes to the neck each hour for the first twenty four hours unless you are sleeping. Place a towel between the ice and the neck so you don’t freeze your neck skin. Use ice until you no longer have significant pain. Keep taking Tylenol or Advil for pain (or naproxen) until you no longer have any pain in the affected area.
Seek medical attention if the whiplash is severe or if the above measures do not work. Doctors can prescribe neck massage to the affected area, neck rest, heat therapy, bed rest, medications for relaxation of the muscles, such as Flexeril, and stronger pain relievers. The doctor will prescribe a soft cervical collar to relieve pain and to remind you not to move your neck around. Physical therapy will work on range of motion and strengthening of the neck as it begins to heal.
If you have suffered physically, mentally or financially, you should consider making an accident compensation claim. For free telephone advice from specialist personal injury solicitors just call the helpline. Our lawyers will assess the strength of your claim and will advise you on your potential award of compensation without any further obligation.