Whiplash injury is a condition that occurs when suddenly moving your neck causes your cervical spine and the upper spine to move in ways leading to injury or neck sprain. It’s a single concept, but it can have several impacts, called whiplash-associated disorders. As it’s an injury in your neck, it is considered an emergency condition and is approached cautiously.

Causes

Whiplash injury can occur to anybody irrespective of age, but older adults, women and also those assigned female at birth are more vulnerable. Older adults are more affected as they are highly prone to injuries in the muscles and bones because of age-related damage and weakening.

On the other hand, women and individuals assigned female at birth get whiplash injuries in situations like car crashes because of the following factors:

Height
As per experts, women, and individuals assigned women at birth have a short average height when compared with men and individuals assigned male at birth. It is so because people with short height sit close to the steering wheel to reach the pedal. This results in a great impact of force on the neck at the time of collision. Other reasons are improper adjustment of headrest, different body proportions and mechanics.

Differences in spinal structures
The structure of the spinal column of women and those assigned female at birth is different from the spinal structure of men and those assigned male at birth. This puts an impact on the distance between every vertebrae.

Muscular difference
These groups have less muscular tissue, which acts like a shock absorber for decreasing the impacts of sudden movement force. In simple words, the available muscle is less to assist in the absorption of movement forces.

Construction of modern vehicle
The construction of the modern vehicle contributes to the risk of getting whiplash injury in women and those assigned female at birth. Headrests do not allow your head to move too much backwards in the case of a collision. For people with short average height, the seat back and the headrest height might affect them differently.

Symptoms of Whiplash Injury

The symptoms of whiplash injury largely depend on the severity of the injury, or how much the neck has extended or compressed. The more the extension or the compression, the more the intensity of the injury. Sometimes, it may take a full day or days for the symptoms to appear.

As whiplash injury can cause several effects, a grading system, called the Quebec Classification of Whiplash Associated Disorders, has been created by experts to determine its severity. It is as follows:

• Grade 0: No injury
• Grade 1: Only pain
• Grade 2: Pain with injury
• Grade 3: Pain, injury and neurological effects
• Grade 4: Serious neurological effects and severe pain

Treatment of Whiplash Injury

There is no single treatment that has shown substantial effectiveness for whiplash injury, but pain relief medicines like ibuprofen, naproxen, etc. are helpful. Along with that, gentle exercises, traction, ultrasound, heat and ice therapy, massage, ultrasound, etc. are effective.

Whiplash injuries were treated in the past through immobilization using a cervical collar. But now, the existing trend is encouraging early movement rather than immobilization. For the initial 24 hours, ice is used, followed by mild active movement.

While it’s not possible to prevent accidents, advancements in automobile safety, such as seat belts, head restraints, airbags, air curtains, etc., are attempting to decrease the risks.

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