Glove and Tool Intervention to Reduce Hand-Arm Vibration

描述（由申请人提供）：这项旨在减少电动工具显著振动暴露的拟议干预研究涉及一个由校外和NIOSH校内研究人员组成的团队。它假定与某些吸收材料（如手套）结合的抗振工具设计可以组合提供特定频率的滤波和消除，这可能会消除工具特定振动暴露的临床和一些亚临床后遗症。所提出的结构化干预，加上密集的实验室评估，提出了两个假设：1）匹配手套和工具的透射光谱可以从根本上减少传递到手臂系统的能量; 2）通过专门的传感器记录暴露的真实的时间、全班次和交叉班次生理反应的测量可以准确地量化暴露减少。为了达到研究目的，将需要：1。现场设置，可以在整个工作日内评估振动到手部的传递率，同时考虑抓握和姿势，工作模式，恢复和多种工具的变化。2.一个应用实验室，可以与熟练的人类受试者一起评估工具和手套，以量化最有前途的工具和材料。3.一个基础科学实验室，配备了激光测振仪和三轴激励发生器，用于在现场测量的工具的时间和力域中产生3D复制品。4.配备电子实验室，对数据记录仪和传感器进行适当的修改，以进行现场测试，并配备触觉计，以检测手部功能的快速交叉变化。一家主要的国家制造商加入了这个项目。这项研究旨在为数百万美国工人的手臂振动保护提供一个实用的解决方案。 公共卫生相关性：近世纪以来，人们已经认识到工业振动对手部的不利影响。我们提出了一项干预研究，其特点是使用现有的抗振动（AV）电动工具和手套，以减少振动暴露。我们建议，通过对特定工具的手套-工具组合进行基于实验室的优化，并进行实地研究以验证性能，我们可以成功地将暴露降低到最终可以预防症状性疾病的水平。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This proposed intervention study to reduce significant vibratory exposures from power tools involves a team of extramural and NIOSH intramural investigators. It presumes that anti-vibration tool design coupled to certain absorbent materials, available as gloving, can in combination provide frequency specific filtering and cancellation that will likely eliminate clinical and some sub-clinical sequalae of tool-specific vibratory exposure. The proposed structured intervention, coupled to intensive laboratory assessment, advances two hypotheses: 1) that matching the transmission spectra of gloves and tools can radically reduce energy transfer to the hand- arm system; and 2) that the real time, full-shift, logging of exposure through specialized sensors and the measurement of cross-shift physiological responses can accurately quantify exposure reduction. In order to reach study aims, the following will be required: 1. Field settings where transmissibility of vibration to the hand can be assessed over a full working day, while accounting for variation in grip and posture, work patterns, recovery, and multiple tools. 2. An applied laboratory where tools and gloves can be evaluated with skilled human subjects to quantify the most promising tools and materials. 3. A basic sciences laboratory equipped with laser vibrometry and a tri-axial stimulus generator for producing 3-D replica in the time and force domains of tools measured in the field. 4. An electronics laboratory equipped to make appropriate revisions to data loggers and sensors for field testing, and tactometers for detecting rapid cross-shift changes in hand function. A major national manufacturer has joined this project. This study is designed to provide a practical solution to hand-arm vibration protection with important public health consequences for several million American workers. Public Health Relevance: The adverse effects on the hands from industrial exposure to vibration have been recognized for almost a century. We propose an intervention study featuring the use of available anti-vibration (AV) power tools and gloves in order to reduce vibration exposure. We suggest that by pairing laboratory-based optimization of glove-tool combinations for specific tools together with a field study to verify performance we can successfully lower exposures to a level where symptomatic disease can ultimately be prevented.