Objective To research the effects of hand-arm vibration on the peripheral circulating functions of hands and the relationships between the cool water loading test and the vascular endothelial active substances in coal mine drillers.
Methods Sixty-four coal mine drillers were divided into high-exposure group, middle-exposure group and low-exposure group by the their accumulative durations of exposure to hand-arm vibration. The vascular endothelial active substances were measured and cool water loading tests (CWLT) were carried out in each group, and then relationships between vascular endothelial active substances and the test results were analyzed.
Results Compared with control group, the serum concentrations of endothelin (ET) and thromboxane B2 (TXB2)increased significantly and the serum concentrations of nitric oxide (NO)and 6-keto-prostaglandin F1α (6-keto-PGF1α) decreased significantly (P<0.01). Compared with control group, the skin temperatures in high-exposure group before CWLT and the skin temperatures at the time points of 5 min, 10 min and 30 min after CWLT in all the exposure groups decreased significantly (P<0.01). There existed significant positive relationships between 10 min temperature recovery rates and 30 min temperature recovery after CWLT and vibration exposure doses (P<0.01). There existed obvious positive relationships between temperature recovery rates and ET concentrations and TXB2 concentrations, and obvious negative relationships between temperature recovery rates and NO concentrations and 6-keto-PGF1α concentrations(P<0.01).
Conclusion There is a consistence between disorders of vascular endothelial substances and temperature recovery of the hand skin in hand-arm vibration workers, hence the disorders of vascular endothelial substances induced by hand-arm vibration could be used as an index in the evaluation of vibration-induced vascular impairment.
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