Neck pain
Neck pain is a common complaint resulting from disorders of any muscles, nerves and bones in the neck. The pain can be work-related (e.g. due to neck muscles that are strained due to poor work postures such as hunching over a computer or work bench) and non-work-related (e.g. due to a driving accident in which a car is rear-ended, resulting in whiplash). IWH research seeks to determine the work-related risk factors for neck pain, how many workers report it, and how to best treat it to ensure a safe and timely recovery and return to work.
Featured
At Work article
IWH study finds 7 in 10 injured workers still experience pain more than a year after injury
A high proportion of injured workers in Ontario experience persistent pain for well over a year after their work-related injury. According to an IWH study of workers' compensation lost-time claimants, 70 per cent of workers experience pain 18 months after their work injury.
Published: September 30, 2022
IWH Speaker Series
IWH Speaker Series
Persistent pain: its role in work absence, health, and employment after a disabling work-related injury
Among working-aged adults, one of every six injuries that need medical attention are caused by work exposures, with over a third of these injuries leading to periods of work absence or disability. Chronic or persistent pain may occur after an injury. It is currently unclear how many workers experience persistent pain and how it impacts worker health and function, return to work and disability benefit expenditures. In this presentation, Dr. Kathleen Dobson shares findings from a study of Ontario workers experiencing a work-related injury or illness focusing on the prevalence of persistent pain, and its association with return-to-work outcomes.
Published: November 2022
IWH in the media
Study finds long-term pain an issue for many injured workers
A recent study of injured workers in Ontario “reinforces the importance of modified duties (if necessary) and return-to-work planning,” researcher say after results showed 70% experienced persistent pain 18 months after being injured.
Published: Safety+Health, November 2022
IWH in the media
7 in 10 injured workers still experience pain 18 months later
Seven in 10 workers who were injured on the job in Ontario still experience pain 18 months after the incident, Jim Wilson reports on findings from an IWH study.
Published: Canadian HR Reporter, November 2022
At Work article
IWH study finds 7 in 10 injured workers still experience pain more than a year after injury
A high proportion of injured workers in Ontario experience persistent pain for well over a year after their work-related injury. According to an IWH study of workers' compensation lost-time claimants, 70 per cent of workers experience pain 18 months after their work injury.
Published: September 2022
IWH in the media
IWH in the media
Rethinking Pain - A CRAM Ideas Podcast episode
Why do we feel pain long after an injury has healed? Do I feel pain differently than you? How does culture affect our perception of pain? And what’s the most effective way to treat the pain that doesn’t stop? CRAM Ideas host Mary Ito speaks with Dr. Andrea Furlan, a leading expert on pain.
Published: March 2022
Journal article
Journal article
The course and factors associated with recovery of whiplash-associated disorders: an updated systematic review by the Ontario protocol for traffic injury management (OPTIMa) collaboration
Published: European Journal of Physiotherapy, January 2021
Sharing Best Evidence
What workplace interventions help workers with MSDs, pain and mental health conditions return to work?
This update of a previous systematic review sets out to find workplace-based interventions that are effective in helping workers with musculoskeletal, pain-related and/or mental health conditions return to work.
Published: December 2019
Journal article
Journal article
Exposure to a motor vehicle collision and the risk of future neck pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Published: PM & R, April 2019
Journal article
Research Highlights
Work absenteeism and recurrent neck pain
A small but important minority—14 per cent—of injured workers experience recurrent neck pain, accounting for 40 per cent of all lost-time days due to neck pain, according to a study of claims made to Ontario’s Workplace Safety and Insurance Board.
Published: January 2011