Have You Been Involved in an Auto-Accident?

Car accident mvc mva chiropractic beaverton neck pain whiplash If you have been involved in an auto accident, you probably have many questions. We hope to help you with your search for answers.

Being involved in an automobile accident can bring about many questions and a lot of confusion. Dealing with the damage to your vehicle can often take priority at the expense of neglecting your body. While the damage to a car can be easily fixed, parts replaced, or even the car replaced, our body can not be replaced. If you are feeling any form of pain or discomfort after your automobile accident, do not ignore these symptoms, call us today to make an appointment to get evaluated.

Once you have made your appointment, please print out our auto injury new patient paperwork to fill it out prior to your appointment.

Please use the following links to navigate this page for the questions you would like to see:

If I've been injured in a car accident, who pays for the treatment?
Is chiropractic care an effective treatment for my auto accident injuries?
Injury TV Resources?

If I've been injured in a car accident, who pays for the treatment?

Few people are aware of what to do regarding their injuries after an automobile accident. The following information is not legal advice and not a substitute for speaking with an attorney specializing in personal injury law.

What is PIP?

All Oregon car insurance policies have what is called PIP (Personal Injury Protection) as part of your vehicle insurance - even if you only have basic liability insurance instead of full coverage insurance, and even if your car was at fault in the accident.
In the state of Oregon, PIP gives each person in the involved car up to 1 year of treatment and a minimum of up to $15,000 of coverage for all necessary medical expenses to treat your injuries related to the car accident. "Medical" expenses include: chiropractic treatments, emergency room visits, medicine, medical doctor visits, and the ambulance bill, among others. Also, your car insurance deductible does not apply to your PIP as there is usually no deductible to pay with PIP.

Although Oregon law mandates a minimum of $15,000 of PIP for each occupant of the vehicle, some Oregon drivers elect to buy more PIP coverage from their insurance agent, typically for minimal increases in their premium.

If you were a pedestrian or a bicyclist and you were hit by a vehicle, your own PIP policy will cover you first. If you were a pedestrian or bicyclist and you don't have your own automobile insurance, then the PIP policy of the vehicle that hit you will cover your medical expenses.

What percentage of people involved in low speed crashes are injured?

A study by Foret-Bruno et al. (1) of over 8,000 automobile crashes revealed that 36% of people involved were injured when the change in the vehicle velocity was less than 9.3 mph. 9.3 mph is approximately how fast many people drive in a parking lot!

I was involved in a car accident where my car did not even get damaged, why do I have pain now?

A study by Chapline et al. (2) revealed that 38% of women and 19% of men were injured after a car accident, even though their car was not damaged.

You have to understand that most modern vehicles are made to withstand crashes up to 8-10 mph without damage to the car, while the average, healthy, adult man can get a neck injury with a change in velocity of 2.5 mph to 5 mph. Therefore, modern cars can crash at speeds that are fast enough to injure you, but not enough to damage your car. Beaverton Chiropractic Wellness Neck Pain Auto Accident MVC

Should I ignore my neck pain after my car accident?

The simple answer is NO. A study by Freeman et al. (6) found that 45% of the entire American population that had chronic neck pain attributed the cause of their pain to a previous automobile accident. Having pain is a symptom that something needs to be taken care of in your body. Ignoring your pain can lead to further problems in the future, including chronic pain.

My child was involved in the automobile accident with me, is it possible my child was injured as well?

A study by Lovsund et al. (3) found that children's risk of injury in a car crash are 2/3 that of an adult in the same car crash. It is always recommended to have your child assessed by a health care professional to ensure there has been no injury to your child.

When and how do most car crashes happen?

Most rear end collisions occur during daylight hours, mostly during rush hour traffic, on straight, flat, dry roads. Driver inattention and slow recognition is the leading cause of rear end car accidents.

Does it matter if I braced for the car accident or if it totally caught me by surprise?

Yes, a lack of awareness in rear end crashes increases the probability of chronic whiplash pain 15 times!

Is it safer to sit in the front seat or the rear seat of a car, or does it matter?

A study by Lovsund et al. (3) found that rear seat passengers were slightly more likely to be injured than front seat passengers.

How many people are injured in car accidents each year in the United States?

U.S. Census data for 2003 (4) estimated the number of people injured in an automobile accident that year to be 1,472,867.

Is the number of people getting injured in car accidents each year decreasing?

No, actually many studies show an increase each year in neck injuries from car crashes (5). This is probably due to a number of factors including number of drivers on the road, car seat stiffness, overall vehicle stiffness, etc.

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REFERENCES
1) Foret-Bruno JY, Dauvilliers F, Tingvall C: Impairment pattern in passenger car crashes, a follow-up of injuries resulting in long-term consequences. Presented at the 14th International Technical Conference on Enhanced Safety of Vehicles, Munchen, 1994.
2) Chapline JF, Ferguson SA, Lillis RP, Lund AK, Williams AF. Neck pain and head restraint position relative to the driver's head in rear-end collisions. Accident Analysis and Prevention 32:287-297, 2000
3) Lovsund P, Nygren A, Salen B, Tingvall C: Neck injuries in rear end collisions among front and rear seat occupants. International IRCOBI Conference on the Biomechanics of Impacts, Bergisch-Gladbach, Germany, 319-325, 1988
4) Hell W, Schick S, Langqieder K, Zellmer H: Biomechanics of Cervical Spine Injuries in Rear End Car Impacts: Influence of Car Seats and Possible Evaluation Criteria. Traf Inj Prev 3(2): 127-140, 2002
5) Jakobsson L, Norin H, Isaksson-Hellman 1: Parameters influencing the risk of AIS 1 neck injuries in frontal and side impacts. International Research Council on the Biomechanics of Impact (IRCOBI) Conerence Proceedings, Montpellier, France, Sept 20-22, 2000
6) Freeman MD, Croft AC, Rossignol AM: Chronic neck pain and whiplash: a case-control study of the relationship between acute whiplash injuries and chronic neck pain. Submitted. (top)

Is chiropractic care an effective treatment for my auto accident injuries?

Will chiropractic treatment help me with my car accident injuries?

A study by Woodward et al. (7) reported that chiropractic care was effective in 93% of people with chronic whiplash. However, it is important to note that managing people with chronic whiplash is more challenging than managing people with a recent whiplash injury.

A meta-analysis of many studies looked at the effectiveness of chiropractic care for the treatment of neck pain (8). The studies showed that chiropractic treatments were effective in reducing pain, improving neck motion, and improving activities of daily living.

A recent study by Giles and Muller (19) compared the efficacy of treating spinal pain via three different treatment methods: medical treatment (medication), acupuncture treatment, and chiropractic treatment (spinal manipulation). They found that chiropractic treatment was over five times more effective than medical treatment and was almost two times more effective than acupuncture!

REFERENCES
7) Woodward MN, Cook JCH, Gargan MF, Bannister GC: Chiropractic treatment of chronic whiplash injuires. Injury 27:643-645, 1996.
8) Kjellman GV, Skargren EI, Oberg BE. A critical analysis of randomized clinical trials on neck pain and treatment efficacy. A review of the literature. Scandinavian Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine 31:139-152, 1999.
9) Giles LGF, Muller R: Chronic spine pain: a randomized clinical trial comparing medication, acupuncture, and spinal manipulation. Spine 28(14):1490-1502, 2003.

Injury TV Resources

A great resource for information about motor vehicle collisions, the injuries from them, and about Chiropractic and how it can help you.

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Back-2-Back Chiropractic Family Wellness Center ~ 3000 NW Stucki Place, Ste 180, Hillsboro OR 97124 ~ Tel: 503-726-2225