Did you visit your doctor, and get told you have a whiplash injury? And this is probably the first time you are hearing of it. Or maybe you’ve woken up with much more neck soreness than you expected yesterday. Now what? What is whiplash? What effect does it have on the body? When does it go away? And what can you do about it? To know the answers to these questions, keep reading. Including the knowledge on how you can reduce the pain from home.
What Is Whiplash?
Whiplash is a neck injury that occurs due to a forceful, rapid back and forth movement of your neck which can cause damage or injury to bones in the spine (vertebrae), discs between the bones, ligaments, muscles, and other tissues of the neck. The medical diagnosis for this injury is “Whiplash Associated Disorder” or WAD for short.
To determine how fast it will take one to recover from whiplash will depend on what class the injury is on. There are 4 categories of whiplash, based mostly on the severity of one’s condition.
- Whiplash Associated Disorder 1- WAD I: Neck pain alone
- Whiplash Associated Disorder 2- WAD II: Neck pain coupled with kiss if range of motion in any direction
- Whiplash Associated Disorder 3- WAD III: Neck pain with loss of motion and neurological symptoms (tingling in hands, down arm, numbness
- Whiplash Associated Disorder 4 – WAD IV – Neck pain with fracture or dislocation
No matter what class you are experiencing, it is important to see a healthcare provider to differentiate the classification of whiplash, especially if you suspect type 3 or 4. WAD IV is the most severe case of whiplash and requires a medical emergency and an ambulance call is appropriate.