The link between whiplash injury and Alzheimer's disease
When you suffer a whiplash injury in a car accident, you are likely to feel the short-term effects of the injury, such as a painful neck, headaches and backache. Once you are recovered from these symptoms, which usually takes a matter of weeks, you are likely to dismiss the whiplash injury as a temporary problem that has been resolved. Read more about whiplash injury symptoms.
However, new research has shown that sustaining a whiplash injury can put you at a higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease in later life.
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease is a type of dementia that affects many elderly people in the UK - around 750,000 in
total. It involves a slow deterioration in brain function, specifically concerning memory, logic and
communication, although exact symptoms can differ between people.
As you age, there is more and more chance that you will develop Alzheimer's. Around one in 20 people will develop Alzheimer's at the age of 65, whilst one in five eighty-year-olds have it.
However, age is not the only factor that can increase the likelihood that you will suffer from Alzheimer's. High blood pressure, high cholesterol levels and smoking can all heighten the chance, as can some genetic abnormalities.
Head injuries have long been known to have an effect on someone's risk of developing the brain disease. However, what has more recently been discovered is that actual physical trauma does not need to occur - a non-contact injury like whiplash can have the same effect.
Whiplash injuries and Alzheimer's
When a whiplash injury occurs, the head will be forcefully pushed forwards and backwards, which can cause some of the nerve tissue in the brain to be damaged. This nerve damages appears to be the starter
in a set of events which can end up in Alzheimer's.
Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania managed to demonstrate the link between the two conditions through the use of pigs as test subjects. Following an acceleration-deceleration event similar to that which would cause a whiplash injury in humans, the pigs' brains were examined and it was found that certain tissues had sustained damage. Further study showed that these tissues had also released a chemical, called A-beta, which is associated with brain function degeneration.
The key to breaking this chain of events appears to be connected to reducing the effectiveness of the A- beta substance when it is released following a whiplash injury so that it does not cause further brain damage in the future.
If you wish to find out more about Alzheimer's disease, please see http://www.alzheimers.org.uk
Getting personal injury compensation for a whiplash injury
If you have sustained a whiplash injury and it was not your fault, you may well be entitled to personal injury
compensation. You can make a claim for the pain and suffering you have experienced, as well as any losses your accident or injury has caused you, such as prescription or transport costs.
As experts in whiplash injury claims, we have helped thousands of people from all over the UK to win their claims for compensation. Our personal injury solicitors have an exceptional success rate and are viewed as some of the finest in the country.
Our solicitors work on a no win, no fee basis and ensure that you are protected from all costs. This means that you will not have to pay for anything during or at the end of your whiplash injury claim - whatever the outcome.
If you would like more information about making a whiplash injury claim with YouClaim, please telephone 0800 10 757 95 or fill in an online claim form.
