Seeing a chiropractor after a car accident

Symptoms after a collision frequently arrive a day or two later rather than immediately. Adrenaline and muscular guarding mask a good deal at the time, and the stiffness that shows up on day two is the normal pattern rather than a sign something was missed.

First, in order

1. Anything serious excluded. After a significant collision that means an emergency department at the time, or a GP soon after. Head injury, fracture, internal injury and significant neurological signs are not chiropractic questions, and excluding them comes before anything else.

2. The claim lodged. TAC covers people injured in transport accidents in Victoria regardless of fault. Your GP or the TAC can advise on lodging.

3. The paperwork in place before the appointment. A claim number and the referral the scheme requires. Treatment given before a claim is accepted is generally billed to you rather than the insurer, and unpicking that afterwards is considerably harder than organising it up front.

If you need to be seen before the claim comes through, you can attend as a private patient and claim on private health cover through HICAPS, but those appointments cannot be billed back to the TAC retrospectively.

What comes through after a collision

Whiplash-associated neck presentations, the most common. Stiffness, restricted rotation, headaches, and pain that is worse the day after. See neck pain and headaches with a neck component.

Upper back and shoulder load, particularly from seatbelt restraint across one shoulder. See shoulder pain.

Lower back presentations, from the seated position at impact. See lower back pain, and sciatica where symptoms travel down a leg.

Jaw pain, which is more common after a collision than people expect. See jaw and TMJ pain.

Why not waiting matters

Neck presentations that are left to stiffen take longer, because the guarding pattern built around the original injury becomes part of the problem.

That does not mean rushing into treatment on day one. It means having it assessed rather than waiting to see whether it settles on its own over several months.

What the assessment covers

• A full history, including the mechanism, direction of impact, head position, whether you saw it coming
• Movement testing through the neck, upper back and shoulders
• An orthopaedic and neurological screen
• An explanation of what was found, before any treatment
• Where you sit relative to work and driving

Where imaging or specialist care is the next step, you will get a detailed letter outlining the findings and recommendations, including the specialist we believe is best suited to your needs.

Get in touch first

Call the clinic before booking online for a TAC matter, and reception will tell you exactly what the scheme needs. The same structure applies to WorkSafe claims.

There is more on the injuries themselves, whiplash, mid-back and lower back presentations, and on what treatment involves, on car accident injuries.