Karen’s Opinion

Years ago, my mother in-law began having white spots on the ends of her fingers. She said that her fingers had a strange feeling and that they were constantly cold. She tried wearing gloves but it didn’t help the situation. She finally went to the doctor. She was diagnosed as having Raynauds disease. We had never heard of it and were at a loss to what was involved. These days we have the Internet to help us investigate all sorts of things. It was not as common, years ago, to have the wealth of information available that we do now.

We discovered that Raynaud’s disease is a condition that causes some areas of your body — such as your fingers, toes, and tip of your nose and ears — to feel numb and cool in response to cold temperatures or stress. In Raynaud’s disease, arteries that supply blood to your skin narrow, limiting blood circulation to affected areas.

The condition affects everyone differently. My mother in-law only counts it as an aggravation whereas some have great stress from it. It interferes with their ability to work. Treatments have become available to offer some relief. The cause of Raynaud’s disease is not definitive. Work related tools where repetitive motion may be the cause in that it jostles nerve endings to the point of causing problems. Those cases may be due settlement for claims of work related injury. There are companies who deal with compensation claims to help injured or persons suffering with Raynaud’s disease seek compensation for their injuries and suffering.