Understanding The Difference Between Whiplash and Whiplash Associated Disorder

Neck pain is the most popular indicator of Whiplash Injury, but many other signs exist.

If you are involved in a car collision in College Park or experienced physical trauma in a sporting accident, other symptoms of Whiplash can include:

• Intense pain in one or both arms
• Significant neck inflammation
• Numbness, tingling, or weakness in one or both arms
• Shoulder pain

Anyone who has already sustained some neck related injury is especially vulnerable to Whiplash.

How Do Chiropractors Diagnose Whiplash?

Most often, Whiplash Injury is diagnosed based on the patient’s description of their pain, as soft tissue damage and strains do not always appear in X-ray scans.

Traditional approaches to treating Whiplash saw patients forced to wear a restrictive collar for weeks at a time while refraining from all activity.

Today, the College Park Whiplash Chiropractors at AICA use some treatment solutions that can provide immediate pain relief, while also addressing the source of each patient’s injury.

How Long Does It Take To Recover From Whiplash?

The depth of one’s Whiplash Injury depends on the extent of their accident, although it can take several days to a few weeks before any symptoms start to appear.

Usually, Whiplash patients begin to notice minor stiffness that often subsides after a short while. Recent medical studies demonstrate that at least eight out of ten Chiropractic patients who experience Whiplash injury are complete pain-free after just a few spinal adjustments.

For less than five percent of all Whiplash patients, their symptoms continue to develop and steadily become worse. For these patients, their injury becomes more debilitating and develops into what is referred to as “Whiplash Associated Disorder.”

This particular condition causes patients to experience slight numbness or tingling in one or both arms, minor dizziness, frequent headaches, fatigue, and short-term memory loss.

Whiplash-Associated Disorder is diagnosed when patients display the following symptoms:

• WAD 0: no complaints or physical symptoms
• WAD I: neck complaints but no physical signs
• WAD II: neck complaints and musculoskeletal signs, such as a limited range of motion or muscle soreness.
• WAD III: neck complaints and neurological signs
• WAD IV: neck complaints and fracture or dislocation

Get Immediate Pain Relief With Our College Park Whiplash Chiropractors

The sooner you can receive professional Whiplash treatment, the better you can protect yourself from chronic pain developing later in life.

If you are involved in a car accident or some other kind of incident that leaves your sore, call AICA College Park to schedule a consultation.

Contact our Chiropractic clinic today by filling out our online submission form or by calling us at (404) 592-0319.