Whiplash and Chiropractic Care

Whiplash is a sudden, sharp snap of your head backwards and forwards following a (rearend) car accident, sports injury, or simply from being pushed from behind. The resulting injury to the structures in your neck can produce neck and shoulder pain and/or stiffness, headaches or dizziness.

Research shows that chronic neck pain and headaches following a whiplash injury often come from the spinal joints of the neck[i]. A Quebec Task Force on Whiplash Associated Disorders (WAD) recommend spinal adjustments, exercise, postural advice and traction as effective treatments[ii]. Chiropractic adjustments and other soft tissue therapies target the mechanical disorders of the spinal joints and soft tissues that follow a whiplash type injury.

An individualized management plan that optimizes the patient’s healing requirements is necessary. Although a few patients will continue to have chronic symptoms, the majority will recover from whiplash type injuries. The initial goal of care is to decrease inflammation, promote tissue repair and remodelling as well as diminish and control symptoms. Some may continue to have mild symptoms or dysfunction and may require intermittent care to sustain the benefits of initial care.

There are risk factors that delay the healing process. These include advancing age, severity of injury, delay of appropriate care and pre-existing degeneration (osteoarthritis) of the spine.

To take care of your whiplash type injury, seek an early diagnosis and treatment in order to correct any spinal problems that may lead to pain, stiffness, headaches or other symptoms or dysfunction and help speed your recovery, A referral is not required to see your chiropractor for ICBC claims.

i. Barnsley, L et al. The prevalence of chronic cervical zygapophyseal joint pain after whiplash. Spine 1995; 20(1); 20-26

ii. Quebec Task Force on Whiplash-Associated Disorders (WAD). Redefining “whiplash and its management”. Quebec City, 1995.