Solving tangled cases of work-related musculoskeletal disorders by international scientific cooperation

Work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSDs) have become a serious worldwide problem. At the same time a number of workers experience a problem in getting their WRMSDs acknowledged. As an attempt to solve these problems, Japanese school lunch cooks' working conditions were discussed at international scientific meetings and a detailed inspection was done at a Japanese school kitchen by Swedish researchers. It revealed that both national and international researchers' opinions coincided. Statements of medical views were written for several tangled cases in Japan and Sweden referring to both the national and international literature. As a result, these tangled cases were acknowledged officially as WRMSDs. New arbitrators and mediators of WRMSDs are required who can understand and communicate between the world of medical and labor sciences and also between the world of science and daily work life.