SAFETY
T262
10
X7502342100
© 4/2017 ECHO Inc.
It is believed that a condition called Raynaud’s Phenomenon, which affects
the fingers of certain individuals, may be brought about by exposure to
vibration and cold. Exposure to vibration and cold may cause tingling and
burning sensations, followed by loss of color and numbness in the fingers.
The following precautions are strongly recommended, because the mini-
mum exposure, which might trigger the ailment, is unknown.
• Keep your body warm, especially
the head, neck, feet, ankles,
hands, and wrists.
• Maintain good blood circulation by
performing vigorous arm exer-
cises during frequent work
breaks, and also by not smoking.
• Limit the hours of operation. Try to
fill each day with jobs where oper-
ating the unit or other hand-held
power equipment is not required.
• If you experience discomfort, red-
ness, and swelling of the fingers followed by whitening and loss of feeling,
consult your physician before further exposing yourself to cold and vibra-
tion.
Repetitive Stress Injuries
(RSI)
It is believed that overusing the
muscles and tendons of the fingers,
hands, arms, and shoulders may
cause soreness, swelling, numb-
ness, weakness, and extreme pain
in those areas. Certain repetitive
hand activities may put you at a high
risk for developing a Repetitive
Stress Injury (RSI). An extreme RSI
condition is Carpal Tunnel Syn-
drome (CTS), which could occur
when your wrist swells and
squeezes a vital nerve that runs
through the area. Some believe that
prolonged exposure to vibration may contribute to CTS. CTS can cause
severe pain for months or even years.
To reduce the risk of RSI/CTS, do the following:
• Avoid using your wrist in a bent, extended, or twisted position. Instead try
to maintain a straight wrist position. Also, when grasping, use your whole
hand, not just the thumb and index finger.
