Everyone who travels in an automobile on a regular basis should learn about the most common auto accident injuries and how they can be treated. About 90 percent of all injuries that occur during rear-end collisions are neck injuries. One of the most common types of neck injuries experienced during these auto accidents is called whiplash. 

Read on to learn more about whiplash and the treatment options for this auto accident injury. 

Whiplash Facts

A rear-end collision can exert a large amount of force on the neck vertebrae because the head often bounces backward and forward during this collision type. This force can injure the neck, or cervical, vertebrae, and the discs that lie between them, and it can also cause sprains and strains in the neck soft tissues, including the muscles that support the neck. 

When whiplash injuries primarily affect muscles and other soft tissues, they often heal in just a few weeks. However, if this injury results in damage to the spinal ligaments, discs, or even arteries, they can cause symptoms that last for a much longer period of time or that never go away. 

Some physicians grade whiplash injuries on a scale of 1 to 5, with grade or level 5 injuries being the most severe. 

Whiplash Treatment Options

There are a variety of treatment options for whiplash injuries, and those with severe whiplash injuries that cause dislocation of neck vertebrae and other serious problems must often undergo surgery. 

However, before recommending whiplash treatment, an emergency room physician will first perform a physical exam to check your neck for soft tissue injuries and/or order medical imaging tests that detect neck bone damage and some soft tissue injury types. 

If your physician determines that only mild soft tissue injuries are causing your whiplash neck pain and stiffness, they may recommend auto injury therapy. During an auto injury therapy program tailored to whiplash treatment, your therapist may at first only prescribe passive treatments that help reduce your neck pain and stiffness as your injuries begin to heal. Passive treatments do not require participation from you and may include massage, ultrasound therapy, and hot or cold therapy. 

As your whiplash injuries begin to heal, your physical therapist may have you participate in active treatments, such as special neck exercises, that help increase your neck's range of motion while also strengthening neck muscles. 

If you drive or ride in a car on a regular basis, then you should learn about the most common injuries that occur during auto accidents and their treatments, such as auto injury therapy. This information can help you feel more prepared for injury treatment if you are ever injured in an auto accident.