Whiplash Injury: How MRI Test Results Help Guide Treatment for Optimal Healing

Whiplash causes sharp, often severe pain and can be debilitating if not properly evaluated and treated in the early stages. Learn how whiplash happens and why an MRI is an important part of diagnosis and recovery planning.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) often plays a key role in the detection of whiplash, but did you know it’s also integral to treatment planning in many cases? At LA MRI Center, our team of energetic and caring MRI specialists offers convenient imaging services in the heart of Koreatown, Los Angeles, California.

In our February blog, we discuss exactly what whiplash is, how imaging tests help with diagnosis, and how an MRI can guide treatment for optimal healing.

What is a whiplash injury?

Whiplash is aptly named as it involves a rapid-fire whipping movement during an accident, generally an auto collision. At the moment of impact, your neck sharply snaps forward, briefly moving out of its normal alignment with your spine. Then, your neck snaps backward.

With this whip-like movement, the soft tissues of your neck can become overstretched or strained before returning to their normal position. This can cause a tremendous amount of soft tissue damage in a matter of seconds.

Whiplash injuries might not cause immediate symptoms. In fact, many people feel fine the day of the accident but wake up a day or two later with severe neck stiffness and pain. Symptoms may worsen steadily, and in more than 15% of cases, pain is severe and chronic.

That’s why early evaluation is crucial for people involved in auto accidents.

How imaging helps with whiplash

After an injury, a physical exam and expert symptom evaluation are the first steps. In many cases, medical providers perform an X-ray at that time.

Although X-rays can’t detect soft tissue damage characteristic of whiplash, they can rule out bone problems such as fractures or dislocations that might cause symptoms that mimic whiplash.

When whiplash symptoms are severe or persist beyond the expected recovery time, medical providers often order MRIs to get a more detailed look at the soft tissues in and around the cervical (neck area) spine.

An MRI can show problems such as:

Muscle, tendon, or ligament tears
Nerve compression
Disc damage, such as bulging or herniated discs
Facet joint injuries
Joint effusion (swelling within a joint)

At LA MRI Center, we utilize the Hitachi Airis II™. Because it’s an open MRI, it avoids that hemmed-in feeling many people associate with traditional MRI machines. This is ideal for people dealing with uncomfortable personal injuries like whiplash. Even people who experience claustrophobia find our MRIs comfortable.

An open MRI provides detailed images that give medical providers the information they need to correctly diagnose and guide treatment.

How MRI results guide treatment after a whiplash injury

Because an MRI can pinpoint the exact areas affected, it allows your medical providers to create detailed treatment plans for targeted healing.

For example, soft tissue strains may respond best to physical therapy, while disc or nerve involvement might require more targeted pain management or interventional procedures. Ultimately, MRI results help avoid guesswork and support treatment plans tailored to your injury.

LA MRI Center is a leader in high-quality, comfortable MRIs. We’re conveniently located and offer free parking so you can get in, out, and on with your life. Schedule your MRI today by calling our office or requesting an appointment online.