[Combined instrumental evaluation of microangiopathy caused by vibrating tools]

A clinico-instrumental study has been carried out on 15 subjects who had been hospitalized for microangiopathy due to vibrating tools at the Work Medicine Institute of the 2nd Medical Faculty of Naples University. Various instrumental methods (in vivo nailbed microscopy, conjunctival biomicroscopy, finger photoplethysmography, hand-contact thermography) were employed. As a conclusion of the research and from the obtained results it is assumed that the evaluation of the various methods, as far as the microangiopathy due to vibrating tools is concerned, should be performed in a critical and exhaustive way. However, the in vivo nailbed microscopy integrated by conjunctival biomicroscopy seems to represent the most sensitive indicator of microcirculatory disorders in differentiating conditions of general microvascular pathology and for a more precise diagnosis and appropriate therapy.