Healing After a Car Accident: Role of Physical Therapy after a Car Accident
Car accidents can be extremely unpredictable and traumatic, resulting in long-lasting emotional, physical, and mental impacts. It can cause lingering limitations on your daily personal and work life. While, in the presence of significant injuries, emergency care is provided, even mild to moderate injuries should be taken seriously and evaluated by a physical therapist. Rehabilitation plays a critical role in facilitating recovery after trauma. Physical therapists are trained to assess and address musculoskeletal issues and guide you through your individualized program from current limitations to your expected goals.
After a car accident, it is not necessary that symptoms appear immediately. At times, symptoms of an injury can take days and even weeks to appear. If left untreated, the injuries from motor vehicle accidents can lead to long-term chronic pain and limitations. Further, such chronic conditions can cause the body to compensate and eventually develop secondary problems, continually causing more and more limitations in your daily personal and work life. Hence, it is critical to seek physical therapy care immediately after a car accident for quick and full recovery.
How can Physical Therapy help after a car accident
In some cases, it is necessary to visit a local ER. However, in other cases, Physical therapists can help provide an immediate whole-body post-accident assessment to identify injuries that may not be immediately apparent.
In some cases, it is necessary to visit a local ER. However, in other cases, Physical therapists can help provide an immediate whole-body post-accident assessment to identify injuries that may not be immediately apparent.
Detailed History Exam
Physical therapists will review your history with a thorough interview to understand the collision and the immediate aftereffects. Your physical therapist will ask multiple questions to understand injury progression from the day of the collision to the day of your evaluation, to determine the overall impact of the accident, and plan the course of your rehabilitation.
Physical Examination
Physical Therapists provide a thorough hands-on examination to understand limitations of the soft tissue, active and passive motion, strength, sensation, nervous system and functional activities. This examination information is critical as it immediately identifies any complications to treatment that may require a specialist referral. If no referral is needed then this information is then used to determine the starting point for rehabilitation and the expected recovery duration. This examination is performed multiple times during the course of rehabilitation to ensure continuous recovery.
Education
A successful rehabilitation program depends on an open line of communication between physical therapists and patients. It is a partnership to ensure that patient concerns, fears and questions are addressed and that a plan is established per patient goals.
What is the physical therapy treatment like after a car accident?
The overarching rehabilitation plan is to rest the inflamed tissues, slowly start graded movement exercises, build strength as the tissues heal and can tolerate activity, and then return to normal life with functional activity training. The specifics of the plan depend on the starting point of rehabilitation, the patients goals, and what the patients can tolerate.
In the initial stages of injury, physical therapists can use a variety of hands-on therapy treatments to alleviate pain and inflammation and promote comfort. The next step is to create an exercise program to target the specific limitations in range of motion and strength.
Targeted exercises are introduced to improve mobility and movements of various affected joints, to prevent long term stiffness and muscle imbalance. Graded strengthening exercise program is then established to address muscle weakness, strengthen stretched muscles in the new range, improve support at the joint and improve stability.
As your mobility and strength improve a function specific training regimen is introduced to help you regain functional abilities like navigating steps, running, working out, lifting, and reaching. Functional and task specific training is a critical step to ensure complete recovery after the accident, ensuring you are meeting your expected goals and continuing having long term relief.
Conclusion
Physical Therapy is a critical component for your recovery after a car accident. Your physical therapist will identify the extent of your injuries and its impact on your daily life. Together, you and your physical therapist will begin a treatment plan to address pain, restore mobility, strength and regain overall well-being after surviving a car accident. If you or your loved one are struggling with pain and limitations from a car accident, reach out to us at 212-706-7480 or info@physisrehab.com to take the proactive step toward long-lasting recovery.