mva mri bulging disc cause/relation to accident

[pinkgarcia]

i was in a mva on 2/3/13, hit on the left at about 20mph, seatbelt on diagnosed with whiplash.  ended up having mri on 2/20/13 that states....at c5-6 there is diffuse posterior disc bulging and early endplate osteophyte formation with effacement of the ventral thecal sac.  Impression: mild c6-7 degenerative disc disease with diffuse posterior disc bulging causing mild effacement of the ventral thecal sac.   Now as for myself, i'm 33 very active/healthy no pain or issues before the accident.  Headache started 3hrs after accident and hasn't ended, neck and upperback pain, shoulders, left upper arm pain and left arm weakness with cold pinky finger and tingling all started right after accident.  
my question is I have a strong feeling that the insurance company (other driver) is going to see the "degenerative disc" and state pre-exisiting condition and not caused by the accident.  He only had minimum insurance Iowa, so i don't want to hire a lawyer, but how can i dispute or argue with them that this injury was caused by the accident?

[npainnks]

just wondering if you had received any relief yet. I had an mva around the same time with some similar symptoms

[pinkgarcia]

Dr said it looks like 2 buldging discs with one pushing lightly on the nerve.  The pain I have in my neck, shoulders, upper back is constant and right around a 3 on the 1-10 pain scale.  Left arm feels weak like I've been lifting weights with just that arm, and the headache is constant and around a 3 as well.  The accident happened 2/3/13 and this is still going on.  The Physical Therapist said my headache is from the muscles being so tight in my upper back, neck and shoulder area that it's pulling on the base of my skull.  My blood pressures is ususally 120/70, but it's been 135-140/85-90 recently and sometimes my heart starts racing for no reason.  How long will this take to heal?  I don't know how long I can take before i cave into taking pain killers which is what i want to avoid.

[S. Kaul, MD]

Hi there!

Well, without a detailed report it would be difficult to comment specifically on the situation. With this part of the report alone, it would be a difficult argument to win. , especially since the changes described are mild. You may like to discuss the situation in detail with the concerned radiologist/ treating doctor.
Hope this is helpful.

Take care!