A 39-year-old auto mechanic has a slight instability of the knee, no atrophy and a preclusion from heavy lifting. What is the level of permanent disability?

A 39-year-old auto mechanic has a slight instability of the knee, no atrophy and a preclusion from heavy lifting. What is the level of permanent disability?

• A. 12 percent
• B. 19 percent
• C. 22 percent
• D. 25 percent

Answer: (C)

The main concept here is how California’s permanent disability rating is determined by both the impairment of the injured body part and the impact on the worker’s ability to perform their job. A knee injury that causes instability conveys functional limitations, but the presence or absence of muscle atrophy and any occupational restrictions can shift the final rating. In this scenario, the knee shows slight instability, which places the knee impairment in the lower to mid range for instability. The absence of muscle atrophy keeps the impairment from being higher due to wasted muscle. However, the worker is precluded from heavy lifting, meaning this knee condition meaningfully limits a mechanic’s ability to perform his usual job tasks. The rating schedule accounts for this kind of occupational limitation, nudging the permanent disability rating upward to reflect the reduced work capacity. Among the options, 22 percent best fits this combination: enough knee instability to push impairment into the mid-20s range, but without atrophy and with a specific restriction from heavy labor. The other numbers don’t align as well with the described physical finding and the occupational limitation: 12 percent would be too low for any instability; 19 percent would understate the impact of the work-precluding restriction; 25 percent would overstate given the lack of atrophy.

The main concept here is how California’s permanent disability rating is determined by both the impairment of the injured body part and the impact on the worker’s ability to perform their job. A knee injury that causes instability conveys functional limitations, but the presence or absence of muscle atrophy and any occupational restrictions can shift the final rating.

In this scenario, the knee shows slight instability, which places the knee impairment in the lower to mid range for instability. The absence of muscle atrophy keeps the impairment from being higher due to wasted muscle. However, the worker is precluded from heavy lifting, meaning this knee condition meaningfully limits a mechanic’s ability to perform his usual job tasks. The rating schedule accounts for this kind of occupational limitation, nudging the permanent disability rating upward to reflect the reduced work capacity.

Among the options, 22 percent best fits this combination: enough knee instability to push impairment into the mid-20s range, but without atrophy and with a specific restriction from heavy labor. The other numbers don’t align as well with the described physical finding and the occupational limitation: 12 percent would be too low for any instability; 19 percent would understate the impact of the work-precluding restriction; 25 percent would overstate given the lack of atrophy.