Whiplash

Whiplash and other car crash injuries cause damage to = the soft tissues surrounding joints. These include muscles, ligaments, tendons = and joint capsules. This can happen even at slow speeds, especially in rear end collisions. An important study on human volunteers found that the human neck will extend to nearly the limit of anatomic tolerance in a rear collision of just 2 mph! Symptoms such as neck pain may begin within the first few days = but back pain, headaches and arm pain may not show until months later as the swelling worsens. Dr. Lawerence Nordhoff, the virtual car crash guru, states that radiating symptoms from thoracic ou= tlet syndrome, myofascial adhesions, trigger points = or neck discs are commonly experienced several weeks after injury. The most co= mmon response for the body, as in any trauma, is the release of inflammatory chemicals into the injured area. These chemicals begin the healing process. This much is good. The only problem is that the body, being thrown so far o= ut of homeostasis, will tend to overreact and make an area swell too much. Thi= s is why ice is so commonly prescribed by just about everyone following a sprain/strain injury. Swelling leaves behind fibrosis, or scar tissue which= is less elastic and has more pain fibers than the tissue it is replacing. This= is bad. One of the early goals in care is to minimize the amount of inflammati= on that pools near the injured areas, and motion is one of the best methods kn= own for accomplishing this. Without motion scar tissue forms from one bone to another reducing the mobility in that joint. Have you ever seen somebody who had a whiplash 10 years before, did not receive proper chiropractic care, a= nd has limited motion in their neck? We see it all the time, because standard treatment used to be a cervical collar, which with few exceptions is the wo= rst thing someone can do. In most cases, gentle mobilization reduces the format= ion of scar tissue and gently pumps swelling out of the affected area. When sho= uld this be employed? After ruling out more serious injury,= the sooner the better. Numerous studies indicate that early intervention leads to a better long term prognosis. A chiropractor h= ighly skilled in manipulation is the best practitioner for this. Other modalities used at this point may be deep muscle massage, ultrasound, electrical stimulation of muscles, heat, hydrotherapy or traction. Performed correctly, these methods aid in reducing symptoms and reducing muscle spasm= s, scarring, etc. Once symptoms have been reduced, range of motion has returned and the patient has stabilized, rehabilitative exercises for strengthening damaged muscles is usually employed. This is most important f= or reducing long term complications as supportive postural muscles stabilize important areas of the back and neck. This is when our fully equipped fitne= ss center comes in handy. It was designed with special equipment for the chiropractic patient. The newest studies are showing that people of all age= s, male and female enjoy the benefits of mild weight training. This is usually= the final step in the recovery process. In other words, a multi‑modal approach to treating soft tissue injuries minimizes the possibility that the patient will have recurrent pain from the accident. Or we could say that a program specifically designed for the individual and his/her injuries is the cutting edge in patient management.