Work-life prevalence of self-reported occupational injuries in mothers of a birth cohort

Purpose: To study self-reported occupational injuries among mothers of a large birth cohort study and to assess the relation of their characteristics with different injury outcomes: occurrence, severity, temporal proximity and recurrence. Methods: We asked 4338 women whether they had ever had “an accident at work, even if it did not require medical treatment”. Participants were also asked the number of accidents throughout their working life, type of injury, and whether it occurred within the last 12 months. Results: Over a fifth (21.8%) of working-age mothers reported having had at least one occupational injury throughout their working life. Wounds and superficial injuries were the most frequently reported types of occupational injuries (11.0%), followed by dislocated bones and joints, sprains and strains (10.7%). Women who reported a history of occupational injuries also had a higher likelihood of reporting a work-related health problem (adjusted-OR=2.64; 95% CI [2.27, 3.07]) and of having a partner who also reported an occupational injury throughout their working life (adjusted-OR=1.86; 95% CI [1.33, 2.62]). Associations remained fairly stable across all outcomes. Conclusions: Our findings point towards a broadened understanding of occupational injury consequences and research focusing on family-level factors that account for the embeddedness of workers in households.