Rosenbaum Personal Injury Lawyers | February 7, 2025 | Car Accidents
Experiencing neck and lower back pain after a car accident is common. This pain can be caused by soft tissue injuries, fractures, and other injuries that may have lasting consequences. Understanding the possible causes of your pain can help in seeking proper treatment and recovery.
Whiplash
Whiplash is a soft tissue injury that occurs when the neck is forcefully whipped back and forth, straining muscles, ligaments, and tendons.
Up to 83% of crash victims suffer a whiplash injury, and these injuries usually happen in rear-end collisions.
When a car is struck from behind, the seat pushes against the occupant’s back, and forces transferred to the spine compress the cervical spine upward. The torso keeps moving forward while the head lags behind, overextending the neck. This can cause injuries to the front of the neck.
After the head slams into the headrest, it snaps forward as the seatbelt prevents the body from continuing its movement. This is responsible for injuries to the back of the neck.
Symptoms of whiplash include:
- Neck pain that gets worse with movement
- Reduced range of motion in the neck
- Pain that radiates to the upper back, shoulders, and arms
- Numbness, stiffness, or a tingling sensation in the neck and arms
- Headaches that radiate from the base of the neck
Whiplash can be a serious and debilitating injury. It can lead to serious consequences like vertebral artery dissection, impingement syndrome, and nerve damage.
Even crashes at speeds of 10 mph can result in whiplash injuries.
Sprains and Strains
A sprain is a stretching or tearing of ligaments (tissue that connects bones), while a strain is damage to muscles or tendons (tissue that connects muscle to bone).
In a car accident, sprains and strains can be caused by:
- Overextension of muscles and ligaments in the neck and back
- Overexertion from bracing for an impact
- Direct trauma from impact with the steering wheel, dashboard, or seatbelt
- Contortion from the force of the crash
These injuries are usually minor and cause limited range of motion, muscle spasms, stiffness, and pain. For some people, damage can be severe enough to require surgery or cause chronic pain and mobility problems.
Pinched Nerves
A pinched or compressed nerve happens when excessive pressure is placed on a nerve by surrounding muscle, bone, or a bulging spinal disc.
The force of a collision can cause misalignment in the spine or inflammation in the soft tissues, which may put pressure on nerves. This can lead to numbness, tingling, and shooting pain.
Herniated Discs
A slipped or herniated disc occurs when the soft, gel-like center of a spinal disc pushes through a crack in the tough outer layer. This puts pressure on nearby nerves and leads to pain, numbness, or weakness.
The force of a collision can make the vertebrae in the spine twist or compress, damaging the discs in between. Slipped discs are one of the most common causes of lower back pain, affecting 1% to 3% of all people at some point in their lives.
Slipped discs usually happen in the lumbar spine or lower back.
There are three ways spinal discs can herniate:
- Protrusion: The disc bulges out between vertebrae, but the outer layer is not torn or damaged.
- Extrusion: The outer layer is damaged, allowing tissue to leak out, but the inner tissue is still connected to the disc.
- Sequestration: Spinal disc tissue has leaked into the spinal canal. It’s no longer connected to the spinal disc.
In the lumbar spine, a slipped disc usually causes sciatic pain by pinching the sciatic nerve that runs down the legs. Sciatica is more likely to be caused by extrusion or sequestration.
For most people, back pain from a herniated disc resolves within six weeks. It’s believed the body either shifts to prevent prolapsed disc tissue from impinging a nerve or gets rid of the tissue naturally. For some, the pain becomes chronic.
Cervical Vertebral Fractures
A cervical vertebral fracture is a break in one of the bones in the neck or cervical spine. These fractures are usually caused by high-energy trauma such as a crash.
In a high-impact collision, the head may whip forward and backward violently, putting immense stress on the cervical vertebrae. Severe fractures can even damage the spinal cord, leading to paralysis.
A cervical vertebral fracture can cause severe neck pain, reduced range of motion, swelling, and stiffness.
Facet Joint Injuries
Facet joints are the small joints located between each vertebra that help stabilize the spine and allow it to twist and bend. Facet joint injuries, or facet syndrome, can cause chronic pain and stiffness.
Normally, facet joint syndrome is caused by age-related degeneration and arthritis, but it can also be caused by trauma from a crash or spinal stenosis. Sudden twisting or hyperextension in a high-energy accident can damage these delicate joints.
Facet joint syndrome can cause pain and reduced range of motion. It may be hard to twist your body to look to the left or right, bend down, or stand up from a seated position.
Spondylolisthesis
Spondylolisthesis occurs when one vertebra slips forward over the one below it, potentially compressing the spinal cord or nerves. In an accident, injuries to the vertebrae, facet joints, spinal discs, or ligaments can cause instability in the spine. This can force a vertebra out of place.
This condition usually affects the cervical vertebrae in the neck or the lumbar region in the lower back.
Spondylolisthesis is usually a degenerative condition. When it’s caused by a crash or trauma, it’s called traumatic spondylolisthesis.
Spinal Stenosis
Spinal stenosis happens when the spinal canal narrows. This may put pressure on the spinal cord and compress nerve roots. It usually occurs in the lower back and neck.
Spinal stenosis is often due to age-related degeneration. It can also be caused by herniated discs, spinal bone spurs, and trauma to the spine.
A Car Accident Lawyer Can Help if Your Neck and Lower Back Are Injured
If you have suffered a neck or back injury in a crash caused by someone else, you may be entitled to compensation. Experienced personal injury attorneys are committed to helping car accident victims recover the full compensation they need to get quality medical care and move forward. Schedule a free consultation with a New York car accident lawyer to explore your options.
Contact Our Car Accident Law Firm in New York City at Rosenbaum Personal Injury Lawyers For More Help
If you’ve been injured in an accident in Manhattan, NY, and need legal help, contact our NYC car accident lawyers at Rosenbaum Personal Injury Lawyers to schedule a free consultation. We also serve in Brooklyn and the Bronx.
Rosenbaum Personal Injury Lawyers – New York City Office
100 Wall St 24th Floor
New York, NY 10005
(212) 514-5007
Rosenbaum Personal Injury Lawyers – Bronx Office
1578 Williamsbridge Rd suite 3b
Bronx, NY 10461
(212) 514-5007
(917) 905-2339
Rosenbaum Personal Injury Lawyers – Brooklyn Office
32 Court St #704
Brooklyn, NY 11201
(212) 514-5007
(917) 920-7332
