COMMON INJURIES SUSTAINED IN CAR ACCIDENTS
Whiplash is the most common injury sustained in a car accident. Upwards of 3 million Americans suffer from whiplash injuries each year. Also known as Cervical Acceleration/Deceleration or "CAD" injuries, whiplash occurs as your body absorbs the extreme force impulse during car collisions. As cars collide into stationary objects or other cars, the we as occupants of the cars experience very quick acceleration and deceleration. Thanks to seatbelts and airbags, our bodies are securely attached to the car, however, our heads are not. This causes our bodies to move first as our heads try to catch up with both the acceleration and deceleration. The result is this unique type of injury that involves our spinal joints and soft tissue.
Other common injuries include sprains and strains of the upper and lower back, sprains and contusions of extremities, concussions and injuries associated with the seatbelts and airbags themselves.
Injuries that occur during car accidents often unique compared to other injuries and require a specialized approach to ensure the best possible outcome.
CHIROPRACTIC TREATMENT FOR CAR ACCIDENT INJURIES
Since injuries sustained in car accidents typically involve spinal joints AND muscles, chiropractic is a perfect fit for treatment. Chiropractic is an overwhelmingly safe and effective way to treat accident injuries. Chiropractic care is also comfortable and does not involve medication. Treatment plans are typically divided into 3 phases. Initially, the goal of treatment is to reduce pain, inflammation and spasm using passive therapy modalities and light spinal adjusting. As pain levels are reduced the goal of therapy is to increase pain free motion and address soft tissue injuries with the addition of manual therapy/massage. Once pain and motion are nearing pre-accident levels muscle strengthening is employed to improve long term function and protection against future injuries. The duration of treatment plans vary depending on the severity of injuries but typically last between 1 and 4 months to ensure full recovery.
