A case is presented of a 54-year-old retired miner with a 2-3 year history of cold intolerance in his feet and cold-induced blanching in his toes. The worker had no significant symptoms suggestive of hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS) such as finger blanching, cold intolerance in the hands, or numbness and tingling in the fingers. Normal plethysmographic toe waveforms were seen at room temperature, with significant dampening of the waveforms post cold stress. He was advised to avoid cold exposure as much as possible, to dress warmly whenever exposed to cold ambient conditions, and to minimize future vibration exposure to the feet. This case demonstrated vasospastic disease in the feet of a worker with a history of foot-transmitted vibration exposure. The results show that non-exposed extremities have less severe symptoms best attributed to central mechanisms and circulating systemic vasospastic mediators.
Keywords:
Machine vibrations; Occupational diseases; Ambient conditions; Cold exposure; Cold stress; Hand-arm vibration syndrome; Room temperature; Vibration exposure; Wave forms