Abstract
Firefighting requires resilience, good fitness, and body composition to prevent injuries. Excess fat and low lean mass raise the risk of MSK injuries like strains, which account for over half of firefighter injuries annually. Identifying fitness and body composition factors related to injury claims can help prevent injuries and reduce occupational risk strain. PURPOSE: We compared the BC profiles of those who filed for workers' compensation (WC) to those who did not. METHODS: Archival data for 499 career firefighters—466 men and 28 women—were analyzed from annual clinical testing. Body composition was measured via bioelectrical impedance. Participants reported whether they filed for WC, serving as a proxy for musculoskeletal injury and a categorical variable to distinguish injury-related filings. GLM analyses assessed differences across WC groups and by gender x WC, with age as a covariate. Fisher’s LSD tests and 95% confidence intervals evaluated pairwise mean differences and post-hoc tests. The significance level was set at p ≤ 0.05. Effect sizes were measured with partial Eta squared (ηp2), indicating small (>0.01–<0.06), medium (>0.06–<0.14), and large (>0.14) effect sizes. RESULTS: The overall GLM multivariate Wilk’s Lambda revealed a statistically significant effect for the WC group (p = 0.012, ηp2 = 0.035), but no WC x gender (p = 0.165, ηp2 = 0.019). In addition, there was a statistically significant effect when age was accounted for (p < 0.001, ηp2 = 0.998). The univariate analysis failed to reveal any statistically significant effects for WC or WC × gender for any of the body composition variables; however, when accounting for age, all of the fitness variables. CONCLUSION: The multivariate model showed differences in body composition based on workers’ compensation (WC) status, but univariate analyses didn't find effects at the individual variable level. Age was a key factor, indicating that aging impacts body composition more than injury history alone. While WC status may indicate prior injuries, long-term age and occupational factors are likely more influential. Targeted strategies to maintain lean mass and reduce fat could lower injury risks and improve operational performance readiness.
Recommended Citation
Simon, Jade; Newman, Sage A.; Hines, Kelly; BRIAN, NEWMAN; Conner, Michael; and Gonzalez, Drew E.
(2026)
"Body Composition Profiling of Firefighters Who Reported Workers’ Compensation: Are Those Who Filed Fit For Duty Part 2,"
International Journal of Exercise Science: Conference Proceedings: Vol. 2:
Iss.
18, Article 223.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.wku.edu/ijesab/vol2/iss18/223