Auto Accident Injuries //
Damage to your vehicle can be clear. But what happens to your body during, and after impact?
Auto accidents are highly traumatic and often stressful events. It’s important to seek care for yourself following an automotive injury, as the effects of an accident may linger long after repairs have been made to your car. It's also not uncommon for the effects of such injuries to appear several days, weeks, or even months following the crash. This is why it's very important to seek chiropractic care before symptoms worsen, or sometimes before they even present.
Vehicles today are carefully designed to help protect people inside during an accident. These features are implemented to dissipate the energy of an impact, which does help reduce the extent of injuries, but it's important to remember that they do not eliminate them. Even at low speed impacts the energy transferred during an accident can lead to significant injury.
Did You Know...
In the cervical spine, injuries occur at speeds as low as 5 MPH! This is only half the speed needed for vehicles to show observable visual damage following a crash. Also, even at these low speeds, the head can still accelerate at a force of 1-12 times the force of gravity (G). To put that into perspective, an astronaut will lose consciousness at 5 times the force of gravity (G).
Now that you know that even at these low impact speeds your body will move with a considerable amount of force. It's crucial to note that this is especially true of your head and neck. In fact, upon impact the head accelerates forward faster than the muscles can contract in an attempt to stabilize and protect you from such force. This type of injury is commonly referred to as "Whiplash", or Cervical Acceleration/Deceleration (or CAD) Syndrome. These injuries cause significant damage to muscles, ligaments and tendons. Although these injuries are typically noted immediately, remember it is not uncommon for these effects to be delayed, especially without proper attention and treatment.
Even after initial medical treatment and examination, it is still important to be examined by a chiropractor as soon as possible. Chiropractic care has been shown to help uncover any underlying hidden damage, relieve current or presenting pain, help avoid or decrease pain in the future, properly correct initial injuries as well as to help expedite healing both quickly and properly.
Common Symptoms of Following a Motor Vehicle Accident:
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Neck pain and stiffness
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Headaches
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Shoulder pain
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Pain between the shoulder blades and/or upper back
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Low back pain and/or sciatica
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Numbness and tingling into the arms or legs
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Fatigue
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Difficulty concentrating
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Dizziness
If you have been involved in a motor vehicle accident in Gresham, Portland or any of the surrounding areas, and are interested in possible chiropractic care don't wait any longer! Dr. Manns specializes in the treatment of injuries sustained following motor vehicle accidents such as sprains/strains, whiplash, disc herniations, low back pain, sciatica, headaches, neck pain, and more.
Your health is important, call today for a FREE examination and treatment consultation with Dr. Manns. Rest assured, when you have an open insurance claim, you will pay NO MONEY out of pocket! Our staff is more than happy to help verify your insurance and provide worry free courtesy insurance billing.