What is whiplash and should I be concerned? A whiplash is an injury that occurs to a person's neck or back following a sudden acceleration-deceleration force, most commonly from motor vehicle accidents. The term "whiplash injury" describes damage to both the bone structures and soft tissues. Some people involved in minor car accidents recover without any chronic symptoms, however most people continue to experience symptoms for years after the injury. Very often, a whiplash is an "emergency medical condition." I treat whiplash patients at Emergency Chiropractic.
Call Dr. Alan Himmel at 954-659-8600
What causes whiplash? Whiplash is most commonly caused by a car accident in which the car the person is riding is struck in the rear by another vehicle. It causes the head and neck or low back to be forced into hyper-extension (backwards) as the seat pushes the person's body forward - and the unrestrained parts of the body are all forced backwards very quickly.
Recent studies investigating whiplash using high-speed cameras and crash dummies have determined that even a 5mph rear impact causes this hyper-extension reaction. This leads injuries such as an abnormal straightening of the spine, and damage to the soft tissues that hold the cervical vertebrae together (ligaments, facet capsules, muscles). Although this might not be life threatening, many doctors including myself consider this an emergency medical condition because this type of injury can cause chronic pain, loss of use of certain body parts, and disability.
Symptoms to let you know you have a whiplash: Any pain in neck, back shoulders or extremities. Dizziness and disorientation, Jaw pain. Weakness, tingling, and numbness in your extremities or in your body. These could be emergencies. Don't delay. Call us at 954-659-8600.
.How is whiplash diagnosed? The doctor will examine the patient to determine if they have any injuries that require treatment. The doctor may request x-rays to check for serious injury to the spine. Sometimes MRI is needed to see the soft tissues which include muscles, ligaments, tendons and inter-vertebral discs MRI's are best because it can find things like instabilities it also gives the doctor a better idea what exactly is causing the symptoms. What is the treatment for whiplash? I always tell patients that they have a choice. The choices are, depending on the findings, conservative treatment like chiropractic and physical therapy, or medical intervention which comes in the forms of pills, injections, or surgery.
Most people given the choice of a needle into their neck or gentle chiropractic and physical therapy, will take the easy and safe choice. Lately, there have been a great deal of new peer reviewed research articles regarding chiropractic.
Please Call my office and speak to me personally: 954-659-8600 or 305-979-5549. If there is ever an issue regarding coverage, or if there is an insurance company that it not responding to a claim, I am here to help. When it comes to your insurance coverage, I will fight for you. After all, this is the coverage that you paid for with your hard earned money--and it wasn't cheap!
WHAT IS WHIPLASH?
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