How often these injuries happen
OSHA recorded 21 severe cases of skin and subcutaneous tissue infections over the last decade. These incidents most frequently affect your lower legs and knees, often turning minor workplace exposures into serious medical emergencies.
These infections are dangerous because they can spread rapidly if you do not treat them immediately. Beyond the initial pain, you may face extended hospitalizations, long-term antibiotic regimens, and potential permanent damage to your affected tissue or limb.
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Free Benefits ReviewWhat causes Skin and Tissue Infections
Exposure to harmful substances through exposed tissue accounts for 73% of these severe cases. This typically occurs when you have an existing cut or abrasion that comes into contact with contaminated fluids, cleaning chemicals, or infectious agents on the job site.
| Cause | Incidents | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Exposure to harmful substance through exposed tissue | 11 |
| 2 | Exposure to harmful substances— unspecified | 2 |
| 3 | Other fall to lower level | 1 |
| 4 | Kneeling, crawling | 1 |
Where injuries happen most
Manufacturing accounts for 33% of all severe infection cases. You are frequently exposed in this sector to machine coolants and industrial lubricants that can introduce bacteria into small skin tears or irritate existing wounds, leading to rapid infection.
Real cases like yours
These incidents often stem from common workplace tasks like cleaning, plumbing, or operating machinery where protective barriers fail. Whether it is a chemical splash onto an open wound or prolonged pressure from kneeling in a contaminated environment, these cases show a pattern of preventable exposure. If your injury followed a similar pattern of exposure or neglect, an attorney can help you review the specifics of your incident.
| Year | State | Industry | Incident summary | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | TX | Administrative Services | "On September 16, 2024, an employee was filling a mop bucket from a dispenser with a solution of water and cleaning chemicals when some of the solution splashed onto a wound on his foot and it became swollen. The employee was hospitalized with an infection to the foot." | |
| 2022 | MA | Manufacturing | "An employee bumped his elbow and sustained a bacterial infection." | |
| 2021 | NJ | Health Care | "An employee who was caring for patients received a bacterial infection." | |
| 2021 | AL | Manufacturing | "An employee was operating a lathe when coolant got onto his face. He was hospitalized, suffering from a bacterial infection." | |
| 2021 | FL | Construction | "On June 28, 2021, an employee spent a long period kneeling while performing plumbing services at a commercial establishment. His left knee swelled and he was hospitalized, suffering from a bacterial infection." | |
| 2019 | RI | Administrative Services | "An employee had been doing lawn care work when he felt pain in his abdomen that radiated to his hip and right leg. He developed a rash and was hospitalized, suffering from cellulitis." | |
| 2019 | OH | Manufacturing | "On July 19, 2019, wet cement got on an employee's elbow. The employee developed cellulitis on the elbow and was hospitalized." | |
| 2019 | MD | Transportation & Warehousing | "An employee had been wearing a training suit while instructing law enforcement trainees in personal defense. Early the following morning, he woke with a fever and a severe headache, requiring hospitalization for a staph infection in his leg." | |
| 2019 | GA | Public Administration | "An instructor contracted MRSA through an abrasion on his right knee from bacteria on the padded mats used by personnel during training." | |
| 2018 | WI | Manufacturing | "An employee's knee buckled while they were walking down stairs. The employee was hospitalized for an infection." |
Source: OSHA Severe Injury Reports. Narratives are verbatim from filings; identifying details may have been redacted by OSHA.