Did my Car Accident Give Me Whiplash?

Whiplash is one of the most common injuries that results from car accidents. If you’ve recently been in a car accident, determine whether you developed a case of whiplash, seek treatment, and request the compensation you’re owed from the driver who caused your injuries with the help of a skilled Mississippi car accident attorney.

• Whiplash results most commonly from rear-end accidents, but also from sports injuries, or from physical assault. Anytime your head is whipped backward and forward abruptly and violently, whiplash can result.
• Whiplash may not show up right away. You may walk away from a car accident feeling fine, only to wake up a day or two later in pain. However, the most severe cases of whiplash are often associated with pain occurring immediately after the injury.
• The pain of whiplash results from damage to the soft tissues in the neck, including ligaments, nerves, and muscles, as well as damage to bones in the neck and spine, and damage to spinal discs.
• Symptoms of whiplash include: stiffness and soreness in the neck; tenderness in the neck and shoulders; a diminished range of motion in the neck and pain from turning the neck; dizziness; headaches typically stemming from the base of the skull; and numbness and tingling in the arms.
• When you see your doctor for a case of whiplash, the doctor will likely discuss your pain with you and test your range of motion, as well as have you undergo an X-ray, CT and MRI scan, in order to ensure that no bones are broken and you did not incur a concussion in the crash, as well as whiplash.
• Treatment of whiplash will likely include rest, ice, heat, over-the-counter pain medications such as ibuprofen or aspirin, prescription pain killers, muscle relaxers, and numbing injections. The doctor will also likely recommend gentle neck stretches and exercises, and may prescribe physical therapy. Whiplash typically lasts somewhere between several weeks and a few months.
• In more serious cases of whiplash, symptoms may include difficulty with concentration or recall, depression, difficulty sleeping, irritability, and blurred vision. Chronic neck pain can persist for many months, and even years, in the most severe cases.

If you have been injured in a Mississippi car accident and developed a case of whiplash, contact skilled Biloxi personal injury attorney Corban Gunn for a consultation, at 228.284.6805.