Decreasing the soft tissue injury on your neck and back in a rear impact collision may be as simple as adjusting your seat and head restraint. When someone is rear-ended in a vehicle the torso and lower neck accelerate forward while the head accelerates backwards and hyper-extends only then to be whipped forward into hyper-flexion. By adjusting your head restraint you can minimize the head movement which then minimizes soft tissue injuries. Here are a few guidelines to adjust your seat and head restraints:
- Position your seat back less than 20 degree angle.
- Adjust the height of the head rest so that your head is in the centre of it.
- Adjust the distance between your head and neck to less than 5cm (2 inches) from your head. The closer your head is to the head restraint the more effective it will be.
For more information on whiplash prevention click the link.
