Whiplash is a relatively common injury that occurs to a person's neck following a sudden hyperextension/ hyper flexion force, most commonly from motor vehicle accident. The term "whiplash injury" describes damage to both the bone structures and soft tissues of not only the neck but also the shoulders, arms, upper back and lower back of patient.
Causes of whiplash
Rear impact car accident, fall from stair, other type of accident and sport injury
Whiplash injury is most commonly caused by a motor vehicle accident in which the car the person is riding in is not moving, and is struck from a vehicle from behind without notice. It is commonly thought the rear impact of car accident causes the head and neck to be forced into hyperextension as the seat pushes the person's torso forward - and the unrestrained head and neck fall backwards. After a short delay, the head and neck then recover and are thrown into a hyper flexion position.
The impact of car accident forces the neck and head beyond their normal range of motion flexion/ extension, which is causing soft tissue damage, over stretching and rupture, muscle stiffness, dizziness, headaches and severe pain. Fortunately, whiplash injury is typically not a life threatening, but it can lead to a prolonged period chronic pain and partial disability.
Symptoms of Whiplash
Whiplash is a term used most often to describe the symptoms resulting from a car accident. You need to visit your doctor (GP) after vehicle accident. A victim of whiplash may experience any or all of these symptoms immediately after the car accident or few hours or days later on:
- Headaches
- Pain in the shoulders
- Pain between the shoulder blades
- Pain in one or both arms
- Fatigue
- Dizziness
- Vision problems
- Ringing in the ears (tinnitus)
- Poor concentration or memory
- Neck pain/ muscle stiffness
- Tight and/or sore muscles
- Tenderness in the muscles
- Low back pain
- Sleep disturbance
- Loss of range of motion in the neck and shoulders
While most patients involved in minor motor vehicle accidents recover quickly without any chronic symptoms, some continue to experience symptoms for years after the injury.
Do I need to see a doctor (GP)?
Even without whiplash symptoms and neck pain, it is a very good idea to see your GP, a private doctor or going to hospital in the case of a car accident. There can be damage without symptoms after car accident, or whiplash injury can have delayed symptoms such as muscle stiffness headaches, dizziness and severe neck pain. Your doctor (GP) and hospital can diagnoses the whiplash injury and refer you to a physiotherapist. The doctor (GP), hospital or physiotherapist can help to determine the diagnoses and extent of whiplash injury and develop an appropriate treatment plan. Sometimes x-ray or MRI scans are very useful in making the professional diagnoses.
Your physiotherapist makes a short and long-term treatment plans to rehabilitate whiplash injury. The physiotherapist also gives appropriate advices to the patient about the symptoms and prognosis of whiplash injury, especially how to prevent further complications.
Recovery of some patient with severe whiplash injury require an adequate communication and multi-disciplinary team working between physiotherapist, private doctor, GP and specialists from hospitals.