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Effects of pressure, cold and gloves on hand skin temperature and manual performance of divers

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Abstract

Cold water immersion and protective gloves are associated with decreased manual performance. Although neoprene gloves slow hand cooling, there is little information on whether they provide sufficient protection when diving in cold water. Nine divers wearing three-fingered neoprene gloves and dry suits were immersed in water at 25 and 4°C, at depths of 0.4 msw (101 kPa altitude adjusted) and 40 msw (497 kPa) in a hyperbaric chamber. Skin temperatures were measured at the fingers, hand, forearm, chest and head. Grip strength, tactile sensitivity and manual dexterity were measured at three time intervals. There was an exponential decay in finger and back of hand skin temperatures with exposure time in 4°C water. Finger and back of hand skin temperatures were lower at 40 msw than at 0.4 msw (P < 0.05). There was no effect of pressure or temperature on grip strength. Tactile sensitivity decreased linearly with finger skin temperature at both pressures. Manual dexterity was not affected by finger skin temperature at 0.4 msw, but decreased with fall in finger skin temperature at 40 msw. Results show that neoprene gloves do not provide adequate thermal protection in 4°C water and that impairment of manual performance is dependent on the type of task, depth and exposure time.

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Notes

  1. Eta-squared (η2) is a frequently reported estimate of the strength of the association between the independent and dependent variables. However, it is often misreported due to confusion between classical and partial η2 (Pierce et al. 2004). Classical η2 is defined as the proportion of the total variance explained by a single factor, the sum provides a measure of the explained variance and has a value between 0 and 1. Partial η2, defines the proportion of the variation that is attributed to a single factor when the non-error variation due to other factors is exluded (partialed out). Hence it provides a measure of the strength of association for that factor.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by Simon Fraser University and Defence R&D Canada, Toronto.

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  1. School of Kinesiology, Simon Fraser University, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, BC, V5A 1S6, Canada

    Joanna Zander & James Morrison

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  1. Joanna Zander
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  2. James Morrison
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Correspondence to James Morrison.

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Zander, J., Morrison, J. Effects of pressure, cold and gloves on hand skin temperature and manual performance of divers. Eur J Appl Physiol 104, 237–244 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-008-0715-9

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