No. SD 34826, 2018 WL 549296 (Mo. Ct. App. Jan. 25,
2018)
Code(s): C002 Medical Causation; C030 Compensability; C033 Pre-existing Condition
Factual
Background:
Claimant
was performing regular shoveling activities at work when she felt a pop inside
her chest, along with pain under her right arm. An x-ray revealed a posterior
fracture of Claimant’s right fifth rib, as well as the presence of an unusual,
possibly lytic lesion affecting the same area. Subsequent additional testing
revealed that the lesion affecting employee's right fifth rib was the product
of an underlying condition, Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH). According to
Employer’s medical expert testimony, LCH caused a weakening of the bone
structure.
Commission Decision:
The
Commission held that Claimant satisfied each of the statutory requirements for
an accident as set forth under Chapter 287, that the accident was the
prevailing factor causing Claimant's injury, and that the injury arose out of
and in the course of Claimant's employment.
Analysis/Holding:
The Court of Appeals held that
Claimant’s right fifth rib was undoubtedly weakened when she went to work on
the morning of 6/20/11, owing to a preexisting degenerative condition, namely,
the lesion referable to LCH. However, Claimant was not suffering from a broken
right fifth rib until after she suffered the accident at work on that date. In
other words, employee suffered an aggravation of her preexisting degenerative
condition as a product of the work accident.
The Takeaway:
Even though Claimant was merely performing her usual daily tasks when the
injury occurred, that activity can still constitute an unusual strain.