How often these injuries happen
OSHA recorded 119 severe cases involving the heart and cardiovascular system. Ischemic heart disease and heart attacks account for 92% of these reported incidents, often leading to emergency surgery and long-term cardiac rehabilitation.
Damage to your heart fundamentally alters your physical capacity and long-term earning potential. Unlike injuries to limbs, cardiac trauma often requires permanent lifestyle adjustments and may prevent you from returning to physically demanding roles in construction or manufacturing.
Heart injury at work? Check what benefits you may be owed.
Free Benefits ReviewHow these injuries happen
Overexertion while moving or manipulating objects is the leading cause of heart-related workplace injuries, accounting for 28% of all reported cases. These incidents often occur when physical strain triggers an acute cardiac event, particularly in high-temperature environments or during heavy manual labor.
| Cause | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Multiple types of overexertion while moving or manipulating external object(s) | 23 |
| 2 | Overexertion while moving or manipulating external object(s)— unspecified | 21 |
| 3 | Exposure to environmental heat | 5 |
| 4 | Hitting, kicking, beating by other person | 5 |
| 5 | Overexertion while materials moving by hand | 5 |
| 6 | Violent acts by other person— unspecified | 4 |
| 7 | Walking, without other incident | 3 |
| 8 | Exposure to harmful substances— unspecified | 2 |
Where injuries happen most
Retail trade accounts for 18% of these severe cardiovascular incidents, followed by construction at 16% and health care at 13%. You may face high-pressure environments, irregular physical demands, and exposure to environmental stressors that can exacerbate your cardiac health risks.
Real cases like yours
Many reported incidents involve you performing routine tasks like shoveling snow, delivering goods, or responding to high-stress situations when a cardiac event occurs. These stories highlight how sudden physical exertion or environmental exposure can lead to severe medical emergencies. If your injury occurred during similar work activities, an attorney can help you review the specifics of your claim.
| Year | State | Industry | Incident summary | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | NY | Administrative Services | "An employee was walking down a roadway between two buildings when they slipped on packed snow and ice, falling to the ground and suffering sternum and myocardial contusions. The employee was hospitalized. " | |
| 2025 | OH | Real Estate | "An employee sustained a heart attack after shoveling snow off a sidewalk. The employee was hospitalized." | |
| 2024 | GA | Accommodation & Food Services | "An employee was delivering food to a customer's home. She walked up to the front door and a dog came running out from the house. The dog bit the employee's left knee. The employee was hospitalized with a stress-induced heart attack." | |
| 2024 | ME | Health Care | "An employee had been doing yard work and was mowing a lawn with a push mower. The employee had a heart attack." | |
| 2024 | WY | Agriculture | "An employee had been assisting fire crews with an active wildfire. The employee suffered a heart attack and was hospitalized for surgery." | |
| 2024 | IL | Health Care | "An employee was attempting to escape from an aggressive patient's path and suffered a cardiac event as the patient was being restrained by other staff. The employee was hospitalized. " | |
| 2024 | PA | Professional Services | "An employee was detecting the lower explosive limit (LEL) and initiated a shutdown of the loading rack, stopping the flow to the rail car. The employee's personal four-gas monitor began to alarm for LEL and he evacuated north toward the end of the loading rack. The employee had difficulty catching his breath and had a rapid heart rate after he evacuated the area. The employee was hospitalized for atrial fibrillation." | |
| 2024 | AR | Manufacturing | "On January 18, 2024, at 11:15 AM, an employee was delivering feed to a chicken farm when their truck became stuck in snow and ice. The employee manually dug out the snow from around the tires, applied tire chains, and was able to drive to the main road. At the main road the employee removed the chains and drove to the mill. Upon arrival at the mill and walking to the office, the employee experienced chest pain and was hospitalized for a heart attack." | |
| 2023 | MN | Public Administration | "On October 24, 2023, an employee suffered a heart attack while completing physical fitness testing on a designated obstacle course." | |
| 2023 | SD | Manufacturing | "An injured employee was found outside next to the building approximately 15 feet from the cab of his truck. The employee sustained neck injuries from a possible fall due to snow and ice and went into cardiac arrest." |
Source: OSHA Severe Injury Reports. Narratives are verbatim from filings; identifying details may have been redacted by OSHA.