Part 3: What Symptoms are associated with a whiplash type injury?

A Whiplash injury often occurs in an instant, often in the blink of an eye- but the symptoms associated with whiplash can last for a long time- sometimes many months and even years. Often times, the patient thinks that the symptoms will go away on their own and not do any type of treatment. This can result in chronic pain. As we mentioned in our last blog post (What Causes Whiplash?), many times whiplash occurs with a rear end motor vehicle collision. Symptoms can be neck pain, headaches, dizziness, memory problems, unsteadiness, fatigue and lower back pain, according to the Spine Research Institute of San Diego. Many times, symptoms do not show up immediately after the accident, but 24 to 48 hours later. The primary symptoms of a whiplash injury include stiffness in the neck, muslce spasms, shoulder pain as well a decrease in the range of motion of the neck. More seriously, whiplash can affect something that cannot be seen- the soft tissues of the cervical spine and cause spinal cord injury; it is therefore very important to seek professional treatment and to take the right steps to prevent future whiplash injuries. This one simple quick jerking of your head can cause a lot of unforeseen pain in the future, affecting many aspects of your life.

Read more about Whiplash in our Special Whiplash series:
Part 1: Can whiplash cause shoulder pain?
Part 2: How does Whiplash Occur?
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