Why Is Early and Consistent Treatment So Important Following an Auto Injury?
Following an auto accident, it is imperative that someone who has pain be evaluated and treated as soon as possible. This needs to be done to rule out significant injury that may require immediate referral for bracing, casting or surgery. In cases where the injury does not warrant surgical evaluation, statistically speaking, an uncomplicated sprain/strain should resolve within 6-12 weeks. However, anyone who is injured and does not seek immediate treatment is possibly penalized in two ways. The most important is the time it takes to recover from an injury and the second is how you are perceived during the settlement process.
When trying to recover from an injury there are three phases of healing acute, sub acute, and chronic. Acute phase is defined as the first 48-72 hours of an injury. The sub acute phase begins 48-72 hours after initial injury and last for weeks to months. Chronic phase is weeks to months after an injury. Obviously, the sooner you start treatment the faster and better your chances are for full recovery.
The second way you maybe penalized for delay in care is dealing with the insurance company settlement process. The perception is if a person is truly hurt they will seek treatment early and they will not miss scheduled appointments. This becomes particularly problematic for people who are “glass half full” positive types or parents of multiple children with extremely busy schedules. The positive person will often put off care assuming that they just need time to heal. When they present 4-6 weeks later with severe headaches, muscle spasm, or worse, it becomes hard to justify to the insurance company why someone in pain did not receive immediate care. It is always best to be evaluated to determine how substantial the injuries are, and let the frequency of care can be based on that evaluation.
Just like early care is extremely important, consistency in care is another huge factor in getting patients to a full recovery. Patients who are inconsistent in care are less likely to completely heal from ligamentous and muscular damage caused in auto accidents. Unfortunately, treatment often requires multiple sessions over a period of weeks to be completely effective. It usually starts by breaking up scar tissue formation utilizing tools like muscle work (massage), ultrasound, and muscle stimulation. Care then progresses into rehabilitative exercises where strengthening exercises are performed on the damaged muscles to make sure that they heal properly.
Unfortunately consistency of care is also used in the determination when patients are settling their claims. If a patient shows up for care once a week or skips weeks between treatment, the insurance company will often utilize that as an indication that their injuries were not sincere or substantial. This stance is taken against the patient regardless of transportation issues, work issues, and schedules. It is extremely important that you communicate with your treating doctor any previous work obligations and pre-planned family vacations, so that can all be properly documented.
With all the things someone has to deal with following an auto accident including getting your car repaired, family schedules, and work issues, immediate and consistent treatment often put a great deal of stress on those who have been injured. However, early and consistent treatment have not only been proven to have the greatest results clinically they also infer significance of injury and help ease the process of settling a claim.