The prevalence of various forms of soft tissue rheumatism, including painful low back syndrome (PLBS), painful restricted shoulder syndrome (PRSS), and epicondylitis without an underlying specific rheumatic disease, and the resultant loss of time from work were determined in a total population of 4,683 rural and 1,103 urban subjects aged 15 years and over in Central Java, Indonesia. In the rural study, 763 respondents with, and 355 respondents without complaints were examined. The urban survey evaluated 925 subjects. Prevalence rates in the rural and urban subjects were 20.0% and 25.8%, respectively, for PLBS, 14.5% and 16.2%, respectively, for PRSS, and 5.8% and 7.5%, respectively, for epicondylitis. Lost time from work in the rural and urban subjects was 9% and 2.2%, respectively, for PLBS, 5% and 1.1%, respectively for PRSS, and 2% and 1.3%, respectively for epicondylitis. The mean number of lost work days per year in the rural and urban subjects were 15.3 and 21.1, respectively, for PLBS, 8.1 and 15.2, respectively, for PRSS, and 3.9 and 2.3, respectively for epicondylitis. Thus, these forms of soft tissue rheumatism exerted significant effects on community life, apart from causing pain and discomfort. Work days lost directly means diminished income in populations lacking any form of unemployment benefits.