Short GSM mobile phone exposure does not alter human auditory brainstem response

Abstract

BackgroundThere are about 1.6 billion GSM cellular phones in use throughout the world today. Numerous papers have reported various biological effects in humans exposed to electromagnetic fields emitted by mobile phones. The aim of the present study was to advance our understanding of potential adverse effects of the GSM mobile phones on the human hearing system.MethodsAuditory Brainstem Response (ABR) was recorded with three non-polarizing Ag-AgCl scalp electrodes in thirty young and healthy volunteers (age 18–26 years) with normal hearing. ABR data were collected before, and immediately after a 10 minute exposure to 900 MHz pulsed electromagnetic field (EMF) emitted by a commercial Nokia 6310 mobile phone. Fifteen subjects were exposed to genuine EMF and fifteen to sham EMF in a double blind and counterbalanced order. Possible effects of irradiation was analyzed by comparing the latency of ABR waves I, III and V before and after genuine/sham EMF exposure.ResultsPaired sample t-test was conducted for statistical analysis. Results revealed no significant differences in the latency of ABR waves I, III and V before and after 10 minutes of genuine/sham EMF exposure.ConclusionThe present results suggest that, in our experimental conditions, a single 10 minute exposure of 900 MHz EMF emitted by a commercial mobile phone does not produce measurable immediate effects in the latency of auditory brainstem waves I, III and V.

Effects of mobile phone electromagnetic fields: Critical evaluation of behavioral and neurophysiological studies

“…Thereafter, several studies examined the effects of short-term exposure (10-30 min) to 2G handset signals on the ABR but found no significant effects on any ABR variables (Table 3). The same group [Stefanics et al, 2007] failed to replicate their preliminary findings [Kellényi et al, 1999] even in an improved experiment (larger sample size, double-blind). A pooled analysis of the data obtained from a multicenter project [Uloziene et al, 2005;Paglialonga et al, 2007;Parazzini et al, 2007a;Stefanics et al, 2007] revealed no effects of short-term exposure to GSM signals on TEOAE, DPOAE, and ABR in 169 healthy young adults [Parazzini et al, 2007a].…”

“…One early study by Kellényi et al [1999] reported a significant effect on ABR but they failed to replicate this finding [Stefanics et al, 2007]. The effects of mobile phone radiation with a weak transmission power could be transient, but only a few studies applied concurrent exposure during ABR measurements [Bąk et al, 2003;Sievert et al, 2005;Kwon et al, 2010b].…”

Effects of mobile phone radiofrequency on the structure and function of the normal human hemoglobin

“…Mobile phone exposure does not induce apoptosis on spermatogenesis in rats which were reported by Dasdag et al [42]. Stefanics et al [43] reported a single 10 min exposure of 900 MHz EMFs emitted by a commercial mobile phone does not produce measurable immediate effects in the latency of auditory brainstem waves I, III and V. Leadbeater et al [44] showed that microwave irradiation on the lipase-catalysed transesterification reaction of methyl acetoacetate does not have a noticeable effect on reaction rate or product conversion. Mobile phone base station-emitted radiation does not induce phosphorylation of Hsp27 reported by Hirose et al [45].…”

Influence of Radiofrequency Electromagnetic Fields on the Fertility System: Protocol for a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…There are more than 2 billion mobile cellular phones in use throughout the world. [ 1] Discarding the wire means that communication is through EMWs (electromagnetic waves) which could have potential hazards. Many recent studies have raised questions regarding the safety of such RF-EMR (Radiofrequency -Electromagnetic waves) exposure to humans .…”