Gardener given payout for VWF

A gardener won £3,000 compensation from his employer after he developed Vibration White Finger (VWF). He had worked as a groundsman and gardener using strimmers and hand mowers for a large part of each working day.

The gardener used an industrial strimmer but was never given protective gloves.

There is real danger of contracting VWF from regularly using power tools that vibrate. This can affect anyone from highway workers using pneumatic drills and surface cutting devices, to those working in forestry, garden and park services who use tools such as strimmers, mowers and chain saws.

VWF is a form of Raynaud's Disease. The symptoms are caused by restricted blood flow in the hands or feet.

Symptoms of VWF progress like this:
· Tingling or numbness that continues after you have stopped using the machinery
· A single finger turns white for a short while and might begin to ache
· The same symptoms become more frequent
· The symptoms spread to other fingers (not usually the thumb). Once several fingers are being affected, the condition is probably permanent, but can still be controlled.
· As the symptoms increase, so do the frequency of the attacks, even without a trigger and the pain can get worse.
The condition can be progressive over a period of several years and although often very mild, can lead to skin ulcers and even gangrene.

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23/01/2008 15:13:26