Whiplash: Causes, Treatment and Prevention
In this article, we’re going to talk about a common condition that you’ll have surely suffered from, or at least know someone that has. We’re talking about whiplash, a problematic condition that can be quite debilitating. Today, we’ll look at what causes it and how you can treat and even prevent it.
What causes whiplash?
Whiplash is the colloquial term for a cervical sprain. Since it’s a sprain, this obviously means that it affects the ligaments. In this case, it affects the ligaments that join the cervical vertebrae.
However, the definition of whiplash has been expanding over time. These days, it refers more to the mechanism that causes it than to the damaged structure itself.
So, under this broader definition, whiplash is an injury to the neck which is caused by an extension followed by a sudden retraction. This commonly happens in road accidents when someone runs into the back of your car.
Because you’re not expecting it, the muscles, ligaments, and other tissues aren’t ready for the impact. Your body is thrown forward and the neck hyperextends. Then, there’s a reflex which retracts the neck to avoid further damage. But, in fact, it’s this combination of extension and retraction that causes the injury.
Treatment
The best treatment for whiplash depends on your symptoms. There are varying degrees of severity and your injury could involve a few or many different structures. You might even have some psychological problems as a result of the injury. Below, we’ve listed some common therapeutic options:
Rest
When soft tissues become damaged, rest is key. However, you need to be careful if you’re thinking of wearing a neck brace because you’ll lose muscle tone and it could make you feel uneasy about moving your neck. Taking enough rest will be the best choice.
You’ll have limited mobility and feel pain due to the inflammation of the tissues, but it’s important to keep moving as these structures heal. Some patients will also suffer from dizziness or nausea, but this will get better with rest.
Treat the muscle contractures
When you suffer from whiplash, contractures are likely to appear in the upper back and neck muscles. After waiting for a couple of days, consider applying heat or visit a physio for some manual therapy or dry needling.
If the pain is caused by the articular facets of the vertebrae, your physio may perform some cervical traction techniques to relieve the pressure.
Rehabilitation
It’s important to try and return to your normal life as soon as possible to prevent the onset of chronic problems or psychological side effects. To do this, you’ll need to undergo some rehabilitation for your muscles.
This will help the muscles to take the stress off other structures and recover normal mobility. Proprioceptive work will also be an important part of regaining stability and having the confidence to make movements without fear of pain.
How to prevent whiplash
In the vast majority of cases, people who suffer from whiplash are perfectly capable of making a full recovery. Only the most serious cases require prolonged treatment or will have any relapses.
So, if you haven’t suffered from whiplash before, the main form of prevention is to strengthen your muscles because it’s usually the result of an accident and therefore very difficult to prevent.
However, if your cervical muscles are properly trained, this can be a great help, both in preventing whiplash and limiting the amount of damage done.
By training your cervical muscles and proprioception, the soft tissues will be more reactive to sudden incidents. This is a great way to prevent whiplash in contact sports, which is another common cause.
One final point to consider is your posture when driving. Ideally, you should have your head further than a couple of inches from the headrest, your back should always be well supported, and you should always use your seatbelt. Just following these three tips will stop your body from moving so much in the event of an accident, thereby reducing the risk of whiplash.
All cited sources were thoroughly reviewed by our team to ensure their quality, reliability, currency, and validity. The bibliography of this article was considered reliable and of academic or scientific accuracy.
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- Aso Escario J., Martínez Quiñones J.V., Miguel J.L. de, Aso-Vizán A., Arregui Calvo R.. Guía para la valoración multiaxial del “esguince cervical” y la patología discal asociada. Cuad. med. forense [Internet]. 2014 Mar [citado 2019 Dic 11] ; 20( 1 ): 36-43.