Auto accidents can cause serious injury. While the damage to your car is usually obvious, that may not always be the case with your body. You may feel perfectly fine after the crash but may develop severe neck or back pain a few days later.
Millions around the world are injured in car accidents each year. Even if you were not traveling at a high speed, the collision can generate immense force causing a host of injuries, including head and back injuries, whiplash, broken bones and bruises. Some injuries heal with time but others can result in chronic, debilitating pain.
Whiplash
Whiplash is one of the most common car-accident-related injuries. It involves a range of symptoms that follow damage to the neck.
Whiplash pain is usually dull and may take from 24 to 72 hours to surface. If left untreated, this dull pain can turn into chronic pain. This is because the body produces excessive scar tissue that can cause the injured muscles to become chronically weakened or tight. This may also lead to misalignment in the neck and shoulders biomechanics, creating further pain and numbness. This combination may become difficult to treat.
Back Pain
Back pain is another common auto-accident-related injury. Back pain can be caused even in a minor car accident.
Acute back pain can be the result of a sudden jolt to the lower back, spinal bones and tissues. Common symptoms associated with auto accident related back pain include –
* Pain and discomfort in the lower back
* Stiffness
* Decrease in movement
* Tenderness
* Pain or numbness that radiates from the back down the leg
Chronic back pain appears just as acute pain and similar symptoms but it typically persists for months.
Immediate medical attention after a car accident is vital to ensure proper recovery. A pain specialist can identify and diagnose conditions that are not visible to the eye.
Many back injuries can be diagnosed with a basic x-ray exam. For a deeper look at spine issues, imaging techniques, such as CT scans, MRIs, bone scans, discograms and other tests.
Auto Accident Injuries Treatment Options
Pain management doctors in San Antonio can diagnose your injuries and design a treatment plan for your back pain. This may include both conservative and minimally invasive interventional pain management options.
Conservative Treatments can include physical therapy, electrical stimulation and ultrasound therapy. Interventional pain management options include epidural steroid injections, facet blocks, nerve blocks, radiofrequency ablation, spinal cord stimulation and more.