Symptoms of Whiplash

Whiplash can occur when you are involved in a car accident. It is usually the result of being hit from the rear end of your vehicle, but it can also happen in which ever direction you are hit. It is the sudden jolt of the collision that creates the injury to your neck. The person can get whiplash in a mild form or in a severe way. It does not relate to the speed of the car, the size or the intensity of the collision, which is a common misconception. Even a minor incident can cause a whiplash injury.

The symptoms of whiplash can appear immediately after the car accident or they can appear much later. The time to see the symptoms will differ from one person to the next. In some cases, the symptoms of whiplash have not appeared in some people for years, although this is quite unusual. In most cases, they will appear right away or within days.

If the symptoms of whiplash appear right after the accident, they are considered to be a serious concern for the person involved. The whiplash injury does not actually harm or fracture the bones but it damages the soft tissues, tendons and muscles of the neck and spine area.

The movement causes the extreme movement which is totally unnatural for the human body and in particular the spine and neck. The human body tried to counteract this movement in order to prevent injury. As such it tightens the muscular system in the body in order to provide head support.

In order to find the extent of the injury you need to get a detailed chiropractic checkup as soon as you can. You should note that a whiplash injury does not appear on an x-ray or radiograph. The only way to find the injury is to use a CAT scan or ultrasound.

The most common symptoms of whiplash are pain or stiffness in the neck, a headache and lower back pain. If you find these symptoms then you need to seek more medical advice right away. You might also find tenderness or swelling in the neck. Other symptoms are spasms in the vertebral column which will also affect the lower back area.

If you have a headache that feels like a tension headache or have severe pain behind the eyes, then you also have symptoms of whiplash. In this case, you need to seek the advice of a doctor right away.