Weather related accidents are the most common cause of auto accidents according to the US Department of Transportation. Annually, some 5.8 million accidents occur with almost a quarter being directly related to the weather conditions. These adverse weather conditions include, fog, snow, rain and slippery road surfaces. Over 6,000 people are killed each year with close to half a million injured in weather related incidents alone! It’s clear that careful driving in these conditions is a must!
So with these high numbers, what should you do if you’ve been in an auto accident?
The first thing you should do is go to ER and ensure that you have no life threatening condition and to ensure you are still in one piece, no broken bones, internal bleeding etc. The ER staff are there to ensure you are ok and not in any danger. Obviously, if your condition is serious, then you will be admitted to hospital for your treatment.
If you’re deemed in a stable condition by ER, your treatment of injuries should not end there. There is a good chance that you may have suffered injuries that the ER haven’t picked up on, or they suggest you to follow up with your primary doctor or specialist depending on your condition.
It’s also very likely you will have experienced whiplash injuries in your neck. These injuries occur at very low speeds and above. An impact as low as 7mph generates enough force to injure your neck. While you may feel a little sore or maybe you don’t feel anything at all, it’s still important to get checked out by a doctor who is specifically trained for looking after accident injury victims. At Warwick Chiropractic, we can take care of this for you.
But what if you feel fine or are just a little sore, should you still come in?
The answer is yes, even if it is just to be examined and looked at and make sure you are ok. However, if there is a problem and you don’t come in, and that problem compounds over time and becomes worse, then you may experience pain and suffering. Moreover, because so much time has elapsed and you didn’t get checked out initially, you most probably won’t be able to claim on insurance. This is why it is so important to be checked out, even if it is merely to satisfy insurance claims. Your examination may highlight an issue you didn’t even know about.
In around a third of all whiplash cases, the issue does compound and become more painful and problematic over several months and more from the accident. In fact, we have seen patients who wonder why they are in pain and when we dig a little deeper we find out they have been in an accident several years prior where they never received treatment. It now becomes more complex to resolve their issues.
So don’t delay, if you have been in an auto accident and you think you feel ok, still come in to be assessed. You don’t know what may have injured and what may get worse over time. In other words, it’s better to be safe than sorry.
We have a site dedicated to providing accident info and you can check it out here.
As ever, any issues, walk in and see us, we’d love to help you.
