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Updated: Mar 23, 2026
Measurement of the Hand Transmitted Vibration of the Human Hand Arm System During Operation of a Hand Tractor
Published on: June 16, 2021
Hand-arm vibration disorder among grass-cutter workers in Malaysia
Nor Azali Azmir1, Mohd Imran Ghazali1, Musli Nizam Yahya1
1a Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM) , Malaysia.
Introduction:
Prolonged exposure to hand-transmitted vibration from grass-cutting machines has been associated with increasing occurrences of symptoms and signs of occupational diseases related to hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS).
Methods:
A cross-sectional study was carried out using an adopted HAVS questionnaire on hand-arm vibration exposure and symptoms distributed to 168 male workers from the grass and turf maintenance industry who use hand-held grass-cutting machines as part of their work. The prevalence ratio and symptom correlation to HAVS between high and low-moderate exposure risk groups were evaluated.
Results:
There were positive HAVS symptoms relationships between the low-moderate exposure group and the high exposure group among hand-held grass-cutting workers. The prevalence ratio was considered high because there were indicators that fingers turned white and felt numb, 3.63, 95% CI [1.41, 9.39] and 4.24, 95% CI [2.18, 8.27], respectively. Less than 14.3% of workers stated that they were aware of the occupational hand-arm vibration, and it seemed to be related to the finger blanching and numbness.
Conclusion:
The results suggest that HAVS is under-diagnosed in Malaysia, especially in the agricultural sectors. More information related to safety and health awareness programmes for HAVS exposure is required among hand-held grass-cutting workers.
