In mild cases of whiplash, pain management can be done at home with ice packs and heat. Your doctor may order imaging tests to determine the extent of the injury. Some doctors order MRI and diffuse tensor imaging scans. Both imaging tests allow doctors to see the soft tissue in three-dimensional detail. In addition to these imaging tests, your doctor may prescribe acetaminophen and aspirin to ease the pain and facilitate recovery.
If your symptoms do not appear right away, you should visit your doctor or urgent care center. Describe the event that caused your injuries and the duration of time since the accident. Also, rate your pain in your neck on a scale of one to ten. Describe your symptoms to your doctor, so he or she can determine if you have a major neck injury that requires medical care right away. However, you should seek treatment immediately if you are experiencing persistent pain after a whiplash injury .
The severity of your symptoms depends on the severity of the injury and the age and health of the patient. Young patients with a mild injury can recover within a few days. However, older patients may experience whiplash symptoms for months, even years, especially if they were involved in a high-impact accident. Whiplash symptoms can range from mild neck strain to fractured vertebrae. A Quebec Task Force created a classification scale for whiplash injuries, including a range of potential severity.
In addition to pain, whiplash symptoms may also affect the quality of your life. Even if the pain is mild and transient, untreated whiplash symptoms can lead to other conditions such as chronic whiplash. Chronic whiplash can even result in permanent disability if left untreated. In addition to the pain and discomfort, you may also experience permanent ringing in the ears or TMJ problems. These conditions require more extensive treatment. It is best to consult a doctor to determine the best treatment for your condition.
While some people experience no symptoms, older people have limited range of motion, which means their discs, muscles and ligaments are more vulnerable to damage. In addition to pain and swelling, whiplash victims may experience stiff neck and difficulty turning their heads. However, the speed at which the collision occurred is not a factor in the severity of your symptoms. A doctor should determine if physical therapy is necessary for you, as the sooner you can start physical activity, the better your symptoms will be.
Although the cause of whiplash is not entirely understood, it is common for a person to suffer from this type of injury, resulting in long-term problems. Although it can be difficult to determine the exact cause of whiplash, the following symptoms are common and may be a sign of whiplash. If you've been involved in an accident with whiplash, you may want to contact a personal injury attorney to discuss the possibilities with your insurance company.