Thermal response of hands to computer work: comparison of three assessment procedures

Abstract

Introduction: Unlike other imaging modalities thermography is absolutely non-invasive and suitable to assess functional changes. However, in some fields, a methodology for its use has not even been set yet. This work compares three different methods to study the dynamics of skin temperature changes in hands during computer work. Methods: A total of 306 measurements of 20 office employees and 6 non-office employees was performed with a thermographic camera during a work shift. The thermograms were subsequently evaluated and three methodologies -regions of interest, two of them newly proposed H2 and H5 -were compared mathematically. In addition, two other methods were compared without mathematical confirmation. Results: The results shown the same tendencies of thermal changes comparing our methodologies with the methodology used earlier in more than 80% (88 % in case of the first method, named H2 method and 85 % in case of the second one, named H5). However, in comparison to an older procedure, our procedures have shown higher sensitivity to temperature changes in more than 60% of cases (61 % in case of H2 and 68 % in case of H5). We measured a variation range difference of 1.6 °C, and, with the H5 method, the whole 2.1 °C compared to the method used earlier. Conclusion: This work has determined a new procedure for measuring of dynamics of hands temperature changes, which is not only easier and faster to perform and evaluate, but it is also more capable of detecting temperature changes on hands.