Studies on the diagnosis and pathogenesis of Raynaud's phenomenon of occupational origin.

353-357. Experiments were designed to investigate tests for the diagnosis of Raynaud's phenomenon of occupational origin between attacks and to investigate the pathogenesis, particularly with reference to factors in the patient. The fingertip blood flow was low not only in subjects with Raynaud's phenomenon (positive group) but also in other users of vibrating tools who did not have Raynaud's phenomenon (negative group). This criterion combined with urinary vanillyl mandelic acid and haptoglobin was examined by analysis of discriminant function. The probability of false discrimination was 3%. Histamine iontophoresis performed after noradrenalin iontophoresis with subsequent comparison of pulse wave amplitudes is useful for identification of the positive group. Haptoglobin was significantly increased and the subjects in whom IgM was increased formed a high proportion of the positive group.