[Musculoskeletal problems and physical activity. Results from a long-term study].

In two Norwegian industrial companies 42 employees (24 female/18 male) with shoulder, neck and back problems took part in a training programme for a period of 12 months. The programme comprised of daily relaxation exercises at work combined with training at home three times a week for about 30 minutes on each occasion. The physical therapy and training apparatus, TerapiMaster, which was constructed in Norway was used both at work and at home. The training programme was developed and monitored by an experienced physiotherapist. The observations of the training programme focused on changes in absenteeism during the training period compared with pre-study absenteeism. For employees with musculo-skeletal ailments the combination of relaxation exercises and physical training with professional instruction and follow-up significantly reduced absenteeism from 11.2 days per year (pre-study) to 0.2 days per year (at the end of the 12-month training period) (p < 0.001). A follow-up 30 months after completion of the formal study showed that absenteeism remained at the reduced rate, probably because positive experiences and "good habits" developed during the study encouraged the participants to continue with the training programme.