Department of Public Health & Clinical Medicine, Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Umeå University,Umeå, Sweden.
Scand J Work Environ Health. 2010 Nov;36(6):509-13. doi: 10.5271/sjweh.3072. Epub 2010 Jun 22.
The aim of this study was to examine the association between white fingers, cold environment, and exposure to hand-arm vibration (HAV). The hypothesis was that working in cold climate increases the risk of white fingers.
The occurrence of white fingers was investigated as a cross-sectional study in a cohort of Swedish male construction workers (N=134 757). Exposure to HAV was based on a job-exposure matrix. Living in the north or south of Sweden was, in a subgroup of the cohort, used as an indicator of the exposure to cold environment (ie, living in the north meant a higher exposure to cold climate). The analyses were adjusted for age and use of nicotine products (smoking and snuff).
HAV-exposed workers living in a colder climate had a higher risk for white fingers than those living in a warmer climate [odds ratio (OR) 1.71, 95% confidence interval (95% CI) 1.42-2.06]. As expected, we found that HAV-exposed workers had an increased risk compared to controls (OR 2.02, 95% CI 1.75-2.34). The risk for white fingers increased with increased level of exposure to HAV and also age.
Cold environment increases the risk for white fingers in workers occupationally exposed to HAV. The results underscore the need to keep exposure to HAV at workplaces as low as possible especially in cold climate.
本研究旨在探讨白指、寒冷环境和手部手臂振动（HAV）暴露之间的关联。研究假设是在寒冷气候下工作会增加白指的风险。
本研究以瑞典男性建筑工人队列的横断面研究调查了白指的发生情况（N=134757）。HAV 暴露基于职业暴露矩阵进行评估。在队列的亚组中，居住在瑞典北部或南部被用作接触寒冷环境的指标（即，居住在北部意味着更高的寒冷气候暴露）。分析调整了年龄和尼古丁产品（吸烟和鼻烟）的使用情况。
暴露于 HAV 且居住在较寒冷气候下的工人患白指的风险高于居住在温暖气候下的工人（比值比 [OR] 1.71，95%置信区间 [95%CI] 1.42-2.06）。正如预期的那样，与对照组相比，我们发现 HAV 暴露的工人患白指的风险增加（OR 2.02，95%CI 1.75-2.34）。白指的风险随着 HAV 暴露水平的增加和年龄的增加而增加。
寒冷环境会增加职业性接触 HAV 的工人患白指的风险。结果强调需要在工作场所尽可能降低 HAV 暴露，特别是在寒冷气候下。
