Assessment of hand-arm vibration exposure among traffic police motorcyclists |
| |
| Authors: | S. M. Mirbod Hideyo Yoshida Marjan Jamali Kazuhito Masamura Ryoichi Inaba Hirotoshi Iwata |
| |
| Affiliation: | (1) Department of Hygiene, Gifu University School of Medicine, 40 Tsukasa-Machi, Gifu 500, Japan. Tel: +81(58) 267 2244; Fax: +81(58) 267 2958 e-mail: mirbod @ cc.gifu-u.ac.jp, JP;(2) Department of Epidemiology, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology, Tokyo, Japan, JP;(3) First Department of Anatomy, Gifu University School of Medicine, Gifu, Japan, JP |
| |
| Abstract: | The aims of this study were (1) to evaluate subjective symptoms in the hand-arm system of all traffic police motorcyclists of a city located in the central part of Japan and (2) to assess their hand-arm vibration exposure associated with traffic police motorcycle riding. The study population consisted of 119 motorcycling traffic policemen and 49 male controls. By means of a questionnaire, information on the occupational history and the presence of subjective symptoms in the hand-arm system of all subjects was obtained. Vibration was measured on the handlebars of the representative motorcycles and on the hands of the riders. The 4- and 8-h energy-equivalent frequency-weighted acceleration as well as the lifetime vibration dose were calculated for all police motorcyclists. The prevalence of finger blanching in the traffic police motorcyclists was 4.2%, but none of the controls had this symptom. The rates of finger numbness (19.3%), finger stiffness (16.0%), shoulder pain (13.4%), and shoulder stiffness (45.4%) were significantly higher among police motorcyclists as compared with controls. The root-mean-square (rms) frequency-weighted acceleration on the handlebars of police motorcycles was in the range of 2.2–4.9 m/s2 rms. The computed 4- and 8-h energy-equivalent frequency-weighted acceleration values were 2.8– 4.5 and 2.0 –3.2 m/s2 rms, respectively. A pattern of increasing percentage prevalence with increasing cumulative vibration dose was noticed. The subjects with a lifetime vibration dose of more than 20.1 m2 h 3 s-4 (ln scale) showed significantly higher prevalence rates for symptoms in the fingers and shoulders as compared with the control group. As occupational vibration exposure of traffic police motorcyclists might be considered a risk factor for the development of symptoms in the hand-arm system of the riders, its evaluation and control is needed for prevention methodology evolution. Received: 15 April 1996/Accepted: 8 November 1996 |
| |
| Keywords: | Motorcycle riding Hand-arm vibration Lifetime vibration dose Prevalence Ergonomics |
| 本文献已被 SpringerLink 等数据库收录！ |
|
