What Is Ligamentous Laxity and Why It Matters for Your Personal Injury Claim — Whiplash Chiropractor Rhode Island

If you have been in a motor vehicle accident and your attorney or chiropractor has mentioned ligamentous laxity, you may be wondering what it means and why it matters. As a whiplash chiropractor in Rhode Island, Cityside Chiropractic identifies and documents this injury in every appropriate MVA case — because it is the finding most chiropractors never look for and insurance companies hope you never find.

What Are Spinal Ligaments?

Ligaments are the connective tissues that hold your spinal vertebrae in proper alignment and control the amount of motion between each spinal segment. In the cervical spine — your neck — these ligaments are responsible for maintaining stability through the full range of motion your head makes every day.

What Is Ligamentous Laxity?

Ligamentous laxity refers to abnormal looseness or instability in the spinal ligaments caused by traumatic stretching or tearing during a motor vehicle accident. Unlike muscle strains that heal with treatment and time, ligamentous damage does not restore itself to pre-injury integrity. The instability it creates is permanent.

How Is It Identified?

Standard MRI does not reliably identify ligamentous laxity. The injury is a functional one — it shows up in how the spine moves, not in a static image. At Cityside Chiropractic we use PostureRay CRMA, a digital radiographic mensuration system that measures intersegmental motion in the cervical spine under standardized conditions. When motion exceeds established normative thresholds the finding is documented as a biomechanical lesion or AOMSI — Alteration of Motion Segment Integrity.

Why Does It Matter for Your Personal Injury Claim?

Ligamentous laxity is a permanent injury. Under the AMA Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment an AOMSI finding generates a whole person impairment rating. Permanent impairment is a significant factor in personal injury settlement valuation. It transforms a soft tissue case into a documented permanent injury case.

For plaintiff attorneys in Rhode Island, AOMSI documentation generated by PostureRay CRMA provides an objective, reproducible, court-defensible permanent impairment finding that goes far beyond standard chiropractic documentation.

As Rhode Island's whiplash chiropractor focused exclusively on personal injury and motor vehicle accident cases, Cityside Chiropractic evaluates every appropriate MVA patient for ligamentous laxity using PostureRay CRMA at both Providence and Cranston locations.

If you were in a motor vehicle accident in Rhode Island and have not had a ligamentous integrity evaluation, call Cityside Chiropractic at (401) 272-5710. Same day appointments available in Providence and Cranston.