Significant Decreasing Trend in Low Back Injuries in a Beverage Company.

Abstract

Work-related injuries in the U.S. have steadily declined over the past three decades. The aim of this study was to compare trends of the most frequently injured body parts from a beverage company over an 8-year study period (2008 to 2015). Work-related injury claims with more than 3 days of missed work (N = 20,203) were classified into body part groups, including low back, knee, shoulder, and all other(s). Descriptive statistics and linear models were used to evaluate trends over time. The total number of injuries decreased from 6.57 per 100 to 3.79 per 100 employees from 2008 to 2015. Proportion of low back injuries decreased from 22.0% to 15.4% (P < 0.001) over the study period. Proportionally, knee(s), shoulder(s), and all other injuries increased, but the changes did not reach statistical significance. Low back injuries decreased at a faster rate than knee, shoulder, and all other injuries.