BACKGROUND: Research has infrequently looked beyond the injured worker when gauging the burden of occupational injury.
OBJECTIVES: We explored the relationship between occupational injury and musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) among family members of injured workers. DATA AND METHODS: We used 2005 and 2006 Truven Health Analytics databases, which contain information on workers' compensation and family healthcare claims. We used descriptive analyses, and negative binomial and two-part models.
RESULTS: Family members of severely injured workers had a 15% increase in the total number of MSD outpatient claims and a 34% increase in the mean cost of MSD claims compared to family members of non-severely injured workers within 3 months after injury. Extrapolating cost results to the national level implies that severe occupational injury would be associated with between $29 and $33 million additional cost of family member outpatient MSD claims.
CONCLUSION: Occupational injury can impose a formerly unrecognized health burden on family members of injured workers. Am. J. Ind. Med. 2015. Published 2015. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.