Have You Been in An Auto Accident? Was your car injured? You may be injured too!
Almost every person will be involved in at least one "motor vehicle auto accident" at some time in their life. Often we are able to simply walk away free of any neck and/or back injury… or so we may think. Hidden neck injury, back injury, shoulder/arm injury or knee injuries from an auto accident can result in permanent pain and discomfort if not treated immediately and properly.
No Vehicle Damage = No Injury...Right?...WRONG!
Insurance companies want you think that the amount of damage to your car determines the value of your bodily injury claim and the amount of injury to the occupants. In fact, researchers have specifically looked at this problem and have found that there is no relationship at all between vehicle body damage and injury sustained by the victims. Studies indicate that neck and back injuries often occur at impact speeds of less than 5 mph, even if there was no damage to the vehicle. How and why does this happen? Well, today’s cars absorb much of the impact in the bumper, but transmits the force of the impact to the person’s head and neck, just like when one pool ball hits another. So, the truth is bumpers are designed to protect cars – not people!Stiffer bumpers are “better” – but only for repair bills, not for your neck and back!
News Release | March 1, 2007
ARLINGTON, VA — Most bumpers on midsize cars do little to resist damage in the kinds of low-speed collisions that are common in commuter traffic and parking lots. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety today is releasing the first results of new tests that assess how well bumpers protect vehicles from expensive damage in everyday fender-benders...."Our tests measure how well bumpers protect cars from damage in everyday bumps," says Institute president Adrian Lund. "The whole purpose of bumpers is to keep damage away from headlights, hoods, and other parts that are expensive to repair. We don't want the automakers to change bumper heights just to get good performance in our tests," Lund explains. "In particular, we want to encourage automakers to use bumpers with energy-absorbing bars that extend farther into vehicle corners to reduce damage to headlights and other critical and costly equipment. We want car bumpers that are taller so they engage the bumpers on SUVs and pickups instead of under riding them."
Low Impact Whiplash Soft Tissue Auto Accident Injuries
A low impact auto accident is generally defined as a car accident that takes place at speeds less than 10 miles per hour (mph). This type of car collision accident usually causes the least amount of visible damage to the vehicles involved. Sometimes due to the fact that minimal damage was done to the vehicle the injuries to the people in the vehicle are often overlooked and not taken seriously even after you've been treated at the emergency room or by your PCP. This does not mean that bodily injury did not occur to the passengers during the crash. Body injuries can and do result from any accident and that includes ones that occur with vehicles going less than 10 mph. Soft tissue damage and soft tissue injuries are the most common problem for those involved in a low impact motor vehicle auto accident.
The back and neck are the usual problem spots for soft tissue car accident injuries. Soft tissue is basically a person’s ligaments, tendons and muscles. Soft tissue injuries are typically classified as contusions or bruises, sprains or strains.
A CONTUSION is an injury to the soft tissue caused by blunt force. This force produces pooling of blood around the injury causing discoloring of the skin. This is commonly referred to as a bruise. Bruising can be found in different shapes and colors.
A SPRAIN is an injury to a ligament often brought about by a wrench or twist. A sprain can be a simple sprain, or a partial tear or a complete tear. This can happen to various parts of a person’s body during an accident. It is not uncommon for a person to twist in their seat as a vehicle strikes theirs during the incident.
A STRAIN is a injury to the muscle or tendon caused by overuse, force or stretching. The force of the car crash can push on a person’s soft tissue or cause parts to stretch in an abnormal way. Muscles and tendons support your bones. A strain may cause a partial or complete tear in the muscle and tendon combination.
Whiplash Symptoms
"Symptoms of a whiplash injury" are not always apparent at the time of the accident. The most common whiplash symptoms occur in the days following an impact (usually within 24-48 hours)-your neck and back muscles may begin to feel stiff and sore due to the stretching and tearing of your muscles and ligaments as inflammation sets in. For others, it may take weeks or months AFTER the accident to experience symptoms:
Neck pain and stiffness
Headaches
Shoulder/arm pain
Low back pain and stiffness
Tingling or numbness in the arm, wrist or hand
Muscle spasm
Dizziness
Ringing in the ears or blurred vision
Difficulty concentrating or remembering
Irritability, sleep disturbances, fatigue
It’s time for you take control of your health. These hidden "soft tissue injuries" are not detected on x-rays. Pain killers and anti-inflammatory medications usually offer little to no relief from symptoms. Even if you are not currently in pain, there nevertheless may be underlying and hidden damage to your spinal column, which may not manifest itself as a serious impairment of bodily function for months or even years. Injuries from car accident injuries are paid for by auto insurance policies either via A visit to our office may end up saving you years of grief and unrelenting pain.
Your Whiplash Injury Treatment is Covered 100%
Many people make the mistake of not coming for treatment because they don’t have health insurance. Injuries from car accident injuries are paid for by auto insurance policies either via Medical Expense Benefit (called Med-Pay)/ Personal Injury Protection (called PIP)/ or a Third Party Bodily Injury Claim. Your treatment is fully covered, no matter who is at fault, and no matter whether you were the driver, a passenger or a pedestrian. Our office accepts ALL car insurance payments with no out of payment from you required (e.g. no co-pays or deductibles to worry about). We will submit the necessary insurance paper work needed to the appropriate auto insurance company and/or your attorney.