While chiropractors enjoy helping their patients get better, the preference is to avoid injury in the first place. If that’s not possible, they try to reduce the risk of serious injury. This is very important when it comes to car accidents. Whiplash-associated disorders (WAD) injuries can persist for months to years and greatly reduce one’s ability to carry out normal activities.
Driving Safely
One of the most important steps is to focus on the road while driving. Eliminate all distractions which include not texting while driving. In one study, researchers observed that using hands-free functions also increased the risk of drivers. Drivers could drift into another lane, drive too closely to cars, and be less responsive to changing road conditions. Other common distractions include fiddling with the radio, eating, reading, driving while intoxicated, while under the influence of legal/illicit drugs or medications, or while tired.
There are multiple strategies to stay safe on the road. These can include taking regular breaks (for long distances), keeping your eyes moving (checking mirrors), and not speeding/driving faster than road conditions allow. Also, follow traffic rules, use your signals, avoid night and bad weather driving, heed caution signs, and keep your car properly serviced. Additionally, it’s important to respond quickly to vehicle recalls when they are announced.
Sometimes it’s not always possible to avoid an accident, but wearing a seatbelt can reduce the risk you’ll be ejected from the vehicle in the event of an accident. Some car accidents can result in a fatality or suffer more serious injuries. Make sure you adjust the headrest properly to also reduce your risk of a serious head/neck injury.
Automotive Improvements
Automobile manufacturers continuously implement safety improvements in their vehicles. Reviewed data between 1995 and 2016 support that vehicle safety design improvements reduced the frequency of rollover crashes from 7% to 3.5%. This compares to the data from 1995-1999 vs. 2010-2016 model year vehicles, respectively. Beginning in 1997, General Motors (GM) introduced high retention seats in their new model cars, SUVs, vans, and light trucks. Recently, a study compared the 1991 to 2000 Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) data to the 2001-2008 FARS data. There were evaluations of the impact of high retention seats. The data show that in rear impacts, high retention seats reduced the fatality risk from 27.1% to 16.6% and the risk of serious injury was up by 70.2%.
If you’re involved in a car accident, even a low-speed collision, it’s important to be evaluated by a chiropractor to ensure any soft-tissue injuries that result are properly treated ASAP to help reduce your risk for ongoing pain and disability.
