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Workers Compensation Patients Have a Greater Pain in the Neck

Why do patients on worker's compensation tend to have a harder time recovering from neck and back pain? There are many theories but no answers. This study looked at over 2000 patients with neck pain. All the patients filled out a standard survey about their background and their health.

Patients who got worker's compensation were compared to other patients. There was one main difference: worker's compensation patients rated their ability to do physical activities lower than other patients. Worker's compensation patients were also more likely to be younger and heavier than other patients. They had less education and were more likely to have been regular smokers at some time in their lives.

This study raises more questions than it answers. More research into the issue will help doctors understand what is stopping some worker's compensation patients with neck pain from getting better.

Reference: 

Hwan T. Hee, et al. Do Worker's Compensation Patients with Neck Pain Have Lower SF-36 Scores? In European Spine Journal. August 2002. Vol. 11. No. 4. Pp. 375-381.

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