Whiplash Injury From Accident? While the word “whiplash,” defined by Dr. Harold Crowe in 1928, was originally utilized to describe neck injuries from automobile accidents, it is now known that whiplash can occur from a variety of traumatic incidents. Hence the term “whiplash” has become a layman’s word to describe a “hyper-flexion/hyper-extension” injury.

The direction of the force determines the damage produced. Therefore, head-on collisions, for example, cause forceful flexion of the neck followed by the recoil of extension. These injuries are called “hyper-flexion/hyper-extension” injuries. Rear-end automobile collisions are referred to as “hyper-extension/hyper-flexion” injuries. In the rear-end collision, which is the most common to cause a whiplash injury, the shoulders are shoved forward. In essence, the head is left standing still and flies backward as the car goes forward in acceleration. As the car quickly comes to a stop, the head is then rammed forward toward the chest.

Accordingly, any impact of one automobile with another that is of sufficient force to bend steel, certainly is strong enough to cause trauma to the human spine. Any force greater than the resistance of the spine at the time of the impact will injure the tissue involved proportionate to the force initiated.

After, symptoms may or may not develop immediately following the incident and have been known to occur or develop weeks or months following the incident. Although the cervical spine or neck is most commonly associated with the words “whiplash injury,” studies have shown that injury to the low back can also result from the acceleration-deceleration event.