April 12, 1999 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)
Sprains, strains, and tears most
frequent time-lost work injury
In 1996, approximately 44 percent of all
occupational injuries and illnesses in the United States involving days away from work
were sprains, strains, and tears. Although the number of sprains, strains, and tears fell
between 1992 and 1996, such injuries have remained a relatively constant proportion of the
total number of cases.
[Chart data—TXT]
By industry, services accounted for the largest share of such injuries
in 1996, followed by manufacturing, retail trade, and transportation and public utilities.
By occupation, operators, fabricators, and laborers had the highest share of such
injuries.
Overexertion was the major event or exposure for over half of all sprains, strains, and
tears; the back was the part of the body most often affected. Containers and worker motion
were the two leading sources of such injuries, each accounting for approximately one-fifth
of the cases. The median number of days away from work for sprains, strains, and tears was
six, or one day more than the median for all injuries and illnesses.
These data are a product of the BLS Safety
and Health Statistics program. Additional information is available from
"Putting a Strain on Workers’ Health" (PDF
26K), Compensation and Working Conditions, Spring 1999.
Sprains, strains, and tears are defined as traumatic injuries to muscles, tendons,
ligaments, and joints caused by sudden wrenching, twisting, stretching, and ripping. The
classification does not include tendonitis or bursitis, illnesses that generally occur
over time as a result of repetitive activity.
Of interest
Spotlight on Statistics: National Hispanic Heritage Month
In this Spotlight, we take a look at the Hispanic labor force—including labor force participation, employment and unemployment, educational attainment, geographic location, country of birth, earnings, consumer expenditures, time use, workplace injuries, and employment projections.
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Read more »