Evidence from:
M.Mahmud et al. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (2000) Vol. 42 #12. p 1178.
At the time of publication it was widely assumed that work was a direct cause of back pain and that pain must be an indication of injury. Neither of these is a fact but Worker’s Compensation administrators have adopted this line of thinking.
This research used scans to see if degree of abnormality was predictive of outcome. It wasn’t. Neither was injury severity.
In the absence of a violent event, such as being struck or falling from height, back pain may not be an indication of breach of duty or causation. Length of absence is not explained by injury factors.
Radar opinion at the time was that psychosocial factors were the most potent predictors of delayed return to work. This research supported that position.
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