International archives of occupational and environmental health
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Int Arch Occup Environ Health · Apr 2015
Does the association between musculoskeletal pain and sickness absence due to musculoskeletal diagnoses depend on biomechanical working conditions?
To investigate single-site and multi-site musculoskeletal pain as predictors of future sickness absence due to musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) among blue-collar employees in food industry, and to study to what extent this relationship depends on physical loading at work. ⋯ A very high level of sickness absence in biomechanically strenuous work was found. Multi-site pain predicted sickness absence due to MSD among the employees with low exposure, but not among those with high exposure.