[Occupational and individual risk factors of muscular pain]

It is suggested that occupational exposure to muscle load should be described by three factors to indicate health risks: level, repetitiveness and duration. A reduction in level is beneficial if the level is high (> 10-15% MVC). However, even a low level involves risk of musculoskeletal complaints if the exposure is repetitive. A reduction of the occupational exposure from 7-8 hours to 4-5 hours per day delays the development of musculoskeletal complaints, but does not provide long-term reduction of risk with frequent repetitions. When interventions are carried out to reduce the risk of occupational musculoskeletal complaints, it is necessary to consider psychosocial and individual constitutional factors in addition to the three factors constituting the occupational exposure to muscle load.