Amount of Pain and Injury after a Car Accident Depends Less on Accident and More on Genes

Insurance adjusters will use any piece of evidence to discredit the amount of a victim’s pain and suffering following a car accident.  They commonly point to the victims car or property damage as proof  that the passenger suffered very little in terms of pain and injury in minor vehicle collisions.  They argue this point even in the face of mounting scientific evidence that an individual may suffer quite severe forms of injury even in the most minor types of accidents.  Insurance companies will question a passengers injuries in the face of mounting medical corroboration, all in an effort to raise profits at the cost of individual rights. However, two studies presented on October, 16, 2012 at the American Society of Anesthesiologist (ASA) annual meeting in Washington D.C. indicated that the amount and harshness of pain that a person feels following a car accident depends heavily on the person’s genes.  The studies, conducted by scientist at the University of North Carolina, were based on 948 adult car accident passengers.  They found that an individual’s genetic variation severly influenced their pain level both during an accident, and six weeks later. The first study looked into the person’s dopamin, which is a neurotransmitter that aids in the regulation of pain processing.  The second study investigated a hormonal system referred to as hypothalmic-pituitary adrenal axis, which controls the body’s reaction to stressful events.  The first study found that certain genetic variations alters the amount of pain experienced directly after an accident.  The second study found that certain genetic variations poses a twenty percent increased risk of neck pain several weeks after a automobile collision. These finding are especially validating to victims of car accidents who often have their injuries questioned by insurance companies hired to protect them.  Dr Samuel McLean, an author of the study suggested that “these findings are important because currently patients who experience persistent pain, who don’t have things you can see that are obviously damaged, are often viewed  with lots of suspicion and they don’t get the treatment they need.”  He continued by saying that just because something can’t be seen on an X-ray or MRI does not necesarily mean the person is not suffering pain and injury.  As he says, “…there’s a whole biology that can cause pain that has nothing to do with broken bone or torn muscle.” It’s highly probable however, that most insurance companies will continue their detrimental practice of denying the amount of pain and injury a victim of a car accident has suffered.  They will probably dismiss these studies as inconclusive and questionable.  I guess now they will try to argue that they know more than doctors AND the scientist who conduct these studies.