Ankle and foot injuries are a widespread problem in the US, with around 7.5 million people suffering from them every year. The statistics show that ankle sprains are most likely to happen in July and August, while foot injuries are likely to occur in December or January.
The weather has a big impact on ankle and foot injuries, as you can probably imagine. Slipping on wet surfaces can cause ankle sprains, whereas falling mostly causes foot injuries. Both are more likely to happen when the ground is wet, so summer is the season when you should be more careful. There are approximately 1.8 million non-fatal injuries and illnesses that occur in the workplace each year. According to the Bureau of Labour Statistics (BLS), the industries with the highest incidence rates were construction, agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting, and manufacturing.
Common Ankle and Foot Injuries at Work.
The three most common types of Ankle and Foot Injuries at work are:
1. Ankle Sprain
2. Ankle Fracture
3. Ankle Dislocation
Foot injuries can be the result of prolonged standing, blunt trauma, or a variety of other workplace accidents. Accidents can result in damage to the bones or soft tissues of the feet and ankles. These types of injuries occur when the ankle receives some sort of injury, resulting in a fracture or fracture of the bones in the ankle or foot area.
An ankle fracture at work can be a clean fracture of a single bone or a catastrophic ankle injury involving multiple surrounding bones and soft tissues such as the Achilles tendon. This type of injury usually occurs from overuse when the tendons around the ankle joint become irritated or inflamed. These injuries are more serious than stress fractures and can occur anywhere on the foot. They happen suddenly, usually after a fall, when a heavy object falls on a worker’s leg, or when equipment or a vehicle hits the leg.
What to do if you get an ankle or foot injury at work?
You have a right to a safe work environment, so if you injured your ankle at work and your workplace was unsafe, you can claim compensation for a broken or sprained ankle or any other injury. Using ladders and scaffolding at work comes with risks, and if you fall from a height, you can sustain ankle injuries, including fractures and sprains. Accidents can happen in any workplace, but some professions carry a lot of risk to the ankle. Serious workplace injuries, such as a severely broken ankle that can leave you paralyzed for life, require large insurance payments.
You are maybe concerned about informing your employer of your injury and using the workers’ compensation system. However, if you sustained an ankle or foot injury at work or as a result of your job duties, you can file a workers’ compensation claim. You can still claim compensation if your injury is an aggravating circumstance of a pre-existing medical condition. With proper medical care, you will know the type and extent of your injury, which provides a solid basis for filing a workers’ compensation claim.
If you or your loved one has injured their ankle or foot as a result of a workplace accident, and are looking for legal advice, we at Gaylord and Nantais have your back. At Gaylord & Nantais’ attorney, Workers’ compensation lawyers at San Francisco and San Jose, California, we have more than 40 years of expertise in successfully representing people who have been hurt on the job. We have experience with claims in a variety of sectors and will do our utmost best to protect your rights.
