A roadmap for assessing the diagnostic usefulness of neurosensory testing and an updated method for exposure assessment among vibration-exposed workers in northern Sweden

Abstract

Workers who use handheld vibrating machines such as grinders, hammers and chainsaws expose themselves to hand-arm vibration (HAV). Exposure to HAV may cause injuries to both the neurological and the vascular system. The occupational health services (OHS) in Sweden use a formal guideline for secondary prevention focusing on early detection of vibration-related injuries. The guide includes several screening tools, such as a screening questionnaire, clinical examinations, and laboratory tests. There are no studies, to our knowledge, on the diagnostic value of the separate items on symptoms in the screening questionnaire in relation to the laboratory tests or the clinical examinations performed during a medical examination among patients exposed to HAV. Furthermore, the recently presented ISO standard for HAV measurements (ISO/TR 18,750) has only been tested for vascular injuries and not neurological injuries. This research roadmap aims to evaluate separate items in a screening questionnaire on neurological symptoms in relation to laboratory and clinical tests among HAV exposed workers in the Arctic region of Northern Sweden. It also covers a comparison of the dose-response of the current ISO 5349–1 measurement standard and the new suggested standard ISO/TR 18,750 with the neurosensory outcomes. This manuscript describes the study rationale, design, methods, and significance.

Keywords

• Health surveillance
• neurological symptoms
• screening
• hand-arm vibration syndrome
• measurements
• Sweden