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Can You Receive Workers’ Compensation for Repetitive Stress Injuries

Repetitive Stress InjuriesRepetitive stress injuries are a common workplace injury that many workers across the country suffer from. When someone performs the same task all day, it can put a lot of stress on their body. Many people who sustain these injuries wonder if they can receive workers’ compensation benefits for repetitive stress injuries. Fortunately for workers who have sustained repetitive stress injuries, they can receive workers’ compensation benefits in many states. Even if the injury worsens over time, they can still receive benefits if the injury happened at work. A workers’ compensation attorney can help you get benefits after sustaining a repetitive stress injury.

What Is a Repetitive Stress Injury?

A repetitive strain injury occurs when there is damage to the muscles, tendons, or nerves caused by constant use and repetitive motion. (Cleveland Clinic) Many times, these injuries can impact the fingers, wrists, elbows, arms, knees, and shoulders. Examples of repetitive strain injuries include:

  • Tendinitis: Inflammation of the fibrous cords that secure muscles to bone. Tendinitis can occur in any area with a tendon, although most commonly, it is in the shoulders, knees, elbows, and wrists. Symptoms include pain, tenderness, and swelling of the affected area. Treatments include rest, physical therapy, and pain medication. (Mayo Clinic)
  • Carpal tunnel syndrome: This is a condition that occurs when a median nerve becomes pressed or squeezed at the wrist. Symptoms include numbness or tingling in the fingers and hand weakness. Hand weakness could cause difficulty for someone in performing daily tasks. Treatments include surgery or a variety of non-surgical treatments. (Cleveland Clinic)
  • Back strains: Repetitive movements involving the back muscles and tendons could cause a back strain or sprain. Symptoms include stiffness in the impacted area or back pain. Also, the inability to maintain normal posture or muscle spasms could occur. Treatments include rest, chiropractic care, or physical therapy exercises to strengthen and stretch the appropriate area. (Mayo Clinic)
  • Shin Splints: This is a condition that causes pain along the side of the shin bone, also known as the tibia. Common people who suffer from shin splits include runners and dancers. Symptoms include tenderness or soreness on the inside of the shin bone. Treatments include rest and ice. (Mayo Clinic)
  • Bursitis: This is a painful condition that impacts the small fluid-filled sacs called the bursae. The bursae are the cushion in the bones, tendons, and muscles near the joints. When this becomes inflamed, someone can suffer from bursitis. Symptoms include swelling, stiffness, or the impacted area hurts when touched. Treatments include medication, physical therapy, or injections. (Medline Plus)
  • Tennis elbow: A condition that occurs when the tendons in the elbow get overloaded because of repetitive motions. Symptoms include pain when shaking hands, turning a doorknob, or holding a cup. Treatments include rest, pain medication, and ice. (Mayo Clinic)

While some of these conditions are mild and can resolve over time, occasionally, they can impact someone’s ability to work. If so, the injured person could recover workers’ compensation benefits for their injury. The benefits someone could receive vary based on the severity of their injury. How much their injury could impact their life and future can also play a role in the benefits someone could receive.

Filing a Workers’ Compensation Claim for a Repetitive Stress Injury

Since you can get workers’ compensation benefits for a repetitive stress injury, there are steps you can take to help you get workers’ compensation benefits. Each state has a different procedure for the exact steps to take. A workers’ compensation attorney can help you through the process to ensure you take the correct steps.

Steps to take once you realize you sustained a repetitive stress injury in the workplace include:

  • Tell your employer about your injury and file a report so you can prove your employer was aware of your injury. You can also send an email to your employer, as long as there is a written record that you informed them. Include a detailed description of the injury and the repetitive motion that caused it.
  • Seek medical attention and inform the doctor that the injury occurred because of repetitive motion you did at work.
  • Fill out the correct workers’ compensation forms. A workers’ compensation attorney Los Angeles can provide guidance and ensure you fill out the correct forms and submit them on time.

To receive workers’ compensation benefits, you must have sustained your injuries because of repetitive motions that you do at work. A medical care provider can offer documentation indicating you have the injury you claim. They can also indicate how someone could sustain this type of injury and relate it back to your work duties.

Jobs With High Risk for Repetitive Stress Injuries

There are many jobs that could cause someone to sustain a repetitive stress injury. Many of these jobs require sitting at a computer, lifting and carrying heavy objects frequently, holding awkward postures, or making micro movements daily. Jobs that have a higher risk of repetitive stress injuries include:

  • House cleaners
  • Custodians
  • Grocery clerks
  • Delivery drivers
  • Firefighters
  • Athletes
  • Bus drivers
  • Manufacturing workers
  • Construction workers

People with high-risk jobs must take measures to prevent the likelihood of sustaining a repetitive stress injury. Knowing the warning signs can help you catch any injury early on before it impacts your ability to work. Seeing a doctor as soon as symptoms come on can help to alleviate the likelihood of further injury.

A Workers’ Compensation Attorney Can Help You After a Repetitive Stress Injury

If you are dealing with a repetitive stress injury because of your job, a workers’ compensation lawyer at KJT Law Group can help you get benefits. Our attorneys believe you can receive workers’ compensation benefits for repetitive stress and can advocate for you to get the financial and medical help you need. You shouldn’t have to pay for your medical bills when your job caused your injuries in the first place.

Contact our law firm today by calling us at (818) 507-8525 or filling out our contact form. A member of our legal team can reach out to you shortly to discuss how your injuries have impacted your life. We can provide information about potential outcomes and how our Los Angeles personal injury attorneys can help. There is no obligation to work with us after a consultation. Afterward, you can decide if you want our firm to move forward with your case.

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