~~This week in my Ann Arbor chiropractic office we have been discussing the injury called “whiplash” and so I've decided to write a blog post on it.

In our Ann Arbor chiropractic office we often see people with whiplash. Whiplash most often results from an event where the neck quickly goes into hyper-flexion and then immediately goes into hyper-extension. Whiplash is often seen as a result of a high impact type activity like collisions in football or in car accidents. Whiplash often results in short and long term pain and ill health. Here, I want to give some information about whiplash, things that can be done to prevent long-term problems from it and some of the physiological aspects of whiplash.

– Whiplash almost always causes spinal vertebrae joint misalignment and if this misalignment is not corrected long-term progressive degenerative effect of the neck bones will result. The bone misalignment most often seen with whiplash victims is a straitening or reversing of the natural forward curve of the neck vertebrae and that often results in short and long term neck stiffness, possibly chronic pain, likely progressive degeneration of neck bones and joints, reduced disc space between the bones of the neck and potentially neurological problems.
– Muscles in the neck and upper back are often impacted as a result of whiplash. Here, muscles will tighten, often dramatically and chronically. Whiplash often causes the nerves that innervate the muscles of the neck and upper back to be compromised and due to this, the signals going through the nerves that innervate the muscles change which causes the muscles to tighten.  Also, the compromised nerves will cause muscle pain, reduced range of motion and possible neurological and muscle degenerative issues.
– The severe flexion/extension motion of the neck that causes whiplash sometimes results in herniation of the discs in the neck. This often results in a great deal of pain and possibly degeneration of the tissues in the neck and upper back and may cause various neurological issues.
– Chiropractors have extensive training in the diagnosis and treatment of whiplash. As mentioned earlier, we regularly treat whiplash victims at our chiropractic office in Ann Arbor. Some of the things chiropractors do to treat whiplash are listed below.
  Chiropractic adjustments of the spinal column
  Suggest and demonstrate exercises and stretches
  Ergonomic and posture advice
  Diet advice

Please feel free to contact me at [email protected] if you have any questions about chiropractic or this blog post.