We’re based right off of Route 22 in Springfield. The road is quite notorious for accidents. We have seen plenty in the past few months of opening, so we’d like to offer some advice to try and minimize those injuries. Whiplash is the most common injury we deal with and it can be reduced if you set your headrest right.
The position in your car seat can affect the likelihood of injuring your neck in an auto accident. We are going to be discussing this is today’s article.
This study is from the Active Bioengineering and Biomechanics Journal; February 2017. It concludes that most studies for whiplash focus on the likelihood of injury in an accident when the subject’s head is placed on the headrest. This is actually a pretty unrealistic position for most people to be driving, if you haven’t already noticed.
So, the team conducted another study where they placed the subject’s head in two different positions which they called “forward body lean.” They did one at ten degrees forward from center, and another one at twenty degrees, the most common angles of people’s heads/bodies in the car. By doing this, they discovered a few interesting things.
They found that if just the head was forward, the likelihood of injury in an auto accident was increased for the capsular ligaments of the neck. If both the body and the head were forward, the likelihood of complete cervical injury increased. With this information, you can tell that it is not safe to have your head/body leaning forward in an automobile.
As you set up your car seat, you should remember to set up the head rest, because it is very important for your well being. They recommend your head be about one to two inches from the headrest. The best way to see if your head is positioned correctly is by taking two fingers and placing them behind your head when you’re in your normal seated position and ask yourself, is this touching the headrest? If it is, that is a good indication that you are the proper distance away.
If you have any questions on our treatment options in Springfield, please contact us, we would be happy to help you and see what we can do for you.
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