How often these injuries happen
OSHA recorded 100 severe mouth injuries over the last decade, with amputations and avulsions representing 36% of these incidents. These injuries often involve significant tissue loss or structural damage that requires immediate surgical intervention and long-term recovery.
Your mouth is essential for basic functions including speech, nutrition, and breathing. Damage to this area can lead to permanent disfigurement, chronic pain, and a diminished ability to perform your job duties, which often necessitates a thorough review of your Workers' Compensation coverage.
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Free Benefits ReviewHow these injuries happen
Most mouth injuries stem from being struck by propelled objects, which accounts for 20% of all reported incidents. Whether caused by flying debris, equipment failure, or accidental ingestion of hazardous substances, these events often result from a failure to maintain safe work zones or provide adequate personal protective equipment.
| Cause | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Struck by propelled object or substance | 20 |
| 2 | Fall on same level | 16 |
| 3 | Other fall to lower level | 9 |
| 4 | Struck by propelled, falling, or suspended object— unspecified | 8 |
| 5 | Struck by falling object | 7 |
| 6 | Injured by object handled by person | 7 |
| 7 | Ingestion of harmful substance | 6 |
| 8 | Bitten or stung by animal | 5 |
Where injuries happen most
Construction accounts for 27% of all severe mouth injuries, reflecting the high-risk nature of environments filled with heavy machinery and falling materials. You are frequently exposed to hazards in these settings that can cause sudden, high-impact trauma to your face and oral cavity.
Real cases like yours
Common patterns in these reports involve you encountering unmarked hazardous liquids, suffering falls from height, or experiencing unexpected contact with machinery and animals. If any of these scenarios sound like what happened to you, an attorney can help you review the specifics of your incident to determine if employer negligence contributed to your injury.
| Year | State | Industry | Incident summary | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | RI | Accommodation & Food Services | "A bartender tasted a small amount of an unknown liquid found behind a bar. He had a severe reaction to the liquid, which proved to be concentrated liquid detergent, and he suffered burns to the interior of the mouth. He was hospitalized and required surgery." | |
| 2025 | FL | Accommodation & Food Services | "An employee drank drain cleaner from an unmarked container, causing burns to their lips and mouth area. The employee was hospitalized." | |
| 2024 | AR | Wholesale Trade | "On October 21, 2024, an employee was navigating over materials while transitioning in and out of the door opening onto a debris catchment scaffold below. One of the walk boards on the scaffold failed, causing the employee to fall to the ground below. The employee sustained swelling above their left brow, on the left side of face, and on the right side of their lip, as well as bleeding and broken teeth. The employee was hospitalized." | |
| 2024 | FL | Construction | "An employee slipped while walking on steel girts loaded on flatbed trailer and fell striking the mast of a nearby, parked forklift. The employee sustained a laceration above his upper lip. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery." | |
| 2024 | IL | Information | "An employee entered a home to complete a work order and was bitten by a dog. The employee sustained lacerations to the upper lip that required surgery and hospitalization." | |
| 2024 | OH | Transportation & Warehousing | "An employee was delivering packages when a dog attacked her and tore off her bottom lip." | |
| 2023 | NJ | Construction | "An employee was leaf blowing to help clean the road. An excavator began backing up and caught the employee's foot, causing her to fall to the ground. The employee sustained the loss of a tooth, abrasions to the face and hand, and a cut to the foot." | |
| 2023 | LA | Construction | "An employee was working in a crew conducting pile driving at a bridge replacement site. A 1-inch-by-43-inch crane anemometer pole broke from a bracket and fell, striking the employee in the mouth. The employee sustained a fracture to the palate of their mouth." | |
| 2023 | IL | Administrative Services | "An employee was using a Johnson bar to pry a piece of concrete with the help of a skid steer. When the bar moved, the employee was struck in the mouth by it, resulting in a tooth avulsion and a mouth injury that required stitches." | |
| 2023 | MA | Professional Services | "An employee was using a stand-up forklift to remove pallets from a rack. The forklift tipped over and the employee's tongue was lacerated, requiring hospitalization." |
Source: OSHA Severe Injury Reports. Narratives are verbatim from filings; identifying details may have been redacted by OSHA.