An investigation into the acute vascular effects of riveting.

Measurements were made on 46 pairs of riveters and matched control subjects before and after a morning9s work. Before starting work, the mean resting finger systolic pressure was 112 (SEM 3.3) mm Hg in the riveters, similar to 117 (1.7) in the control subjects. After cooling the middle phalanx to 10 degrees C for five minutes, 16 riveters but only one control subject exhibited digital vasospasm and these numbers were unaltered after a morning9s work. A subgroup of riveters whose role was always to provide counter pressure to the rivet gun showed a higher incidence (45%) of cold induced vasospasm than did riveters who invariably held the gun (10%) or rotated between both roles (27%). Plasma levels of three markers of vascular activity, endothelin-1 (ET-1), von Willebrand factor antigen (vWFAg), and angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE), were measured in non-smoking riveters and control subjects. Before work, ET-1 concentrations were slightly lower (p