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Effects of exposure to electromagnetic field from 915 MHz radiofrequency identification system on circulating blood cells in the healthy adult rat.

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Kim HS, Park JS, Jin YB, Do Choi H, Kwon JH, Pack JK, Kim N, Ahn YH. · 2017

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Exposure to a 915 MHz RFID signal altered circulating blood cell counts in rats, but the changes stayed within normal physiological response ranges.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Researchers exposed Sprague-Dawley rats to a 915 MHz radiofrequency identification signal at a whole-body specific absorption rate of 2 W/kg for 8 hours per day, 5 days per week, for 2 weeks. The number of red blood cells and values of hemoglobin, hematocrit, and red blood cell indices were increased in the RFID-exposed group compared with the cage-control and sham-exposed groups. The number of white blood cells, including lymphocytes, was decreased in RFID-exposed rats, though T-cell counts and the CD4+/CD8+ ratio showed no statistically significant difference between sham-exposed and RFID-exposed groups. The researchers noted that these changes do not necessarily indicate that RFID exposure is harmful, as they were within the normal physiological response range.

Why This Matters

Complete blood counts were performed after RFID exposure, and the CD4+/CD8+ ratio was determined by flow cytometry. The RBC and platelet numbers remained within normal physiologic response ranges. The decrease in white blood cells did not extend to a significant change in T-cell counts or the CD4+/CD8+ ratio between sham and RFID-exposed animals.

Exposure Details

SAR
2 W/kg
Source/Device
915 MHz
Exposure Duration
8 h per day, 5 days per week, for 2 weeks

Exposure Context

This study used 2 W/kg for SAR (device absorption):

Building Biology guidelines are practitioner-based limits from real-world assessments. BioInitiative Report recommendations are based on peer-reviewed science. Check Your Exposure to compare your own measurements.

Where This Falls on the Concern Scale

Study Exposure Level in ContextStudy Exposure Level in ContextThis study: 2 W/kgExtreme Concern - 0.1 W/kgFCC Limit - 1.6 W/kgEffects observed in the Extreme Concern range (Building Biology)This level is 1 times the FCC limit
A logarithmic frequency spectrum from 10 Hz to 100 GHz showing where this study's 915 MHz exposure sits relative to common EMF sources.Where This Frequency Sits on the EMF SpectrumELFVLFLF / MFHF / VHFUHFSHFmm10 Hz100 GHzThis study: 915 MHzPower lines50/60 Hz5G mm28 GHzLogarithmic scale

Study Details

We investigated whether exposure to the 915 MHz radiofrequency identification (RFID) signal affected circulating blood cells in rats.

Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to RFID at a whole-body specific absorption rate of 2 W/kg for 8 h ...

The number of red blood cells (RBCs) and the values of hemoglobin, hematocrit, and RBC indices were ...

Although the number of circulating blood cells was significantly altered by RFID exposure at a whole-body specific absorption rate of 2 W/kg for 2 weeks, these changes do not necessarily indicate that RFID exposure is harmful, as they were within the normal physiological response range

Cite This Study
Kim HS, Park JS, Jin YB, Do Choi H, Kwon JH, Pack JK, Kim N, Ahn YH. (2017). Effects of exposure to electromagnetic field from 915 MHz radiofrequency identification system on circulating blood cells in the healthy adult rat. Bioelectromagnetics. 2017 Nov 24. doi: 10.1002/bem.22093.
Show BibTeX
@article{hs_2017_effects_of_exposure_to_1101,
  author = {Kim HS and Park JS and Jin YB and Do Choi H and Kwon JH and Pack JK and Kim N and Ahn YH.},
  title = {Effects of exposure to electromagnetic field from 915 MHz radiofrequency identification system on circulating blood cells in the healthy adult rat.},
  year = {2017},
  
  url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29171038/},
}
PubMed: 29171038

Cited By (10 papers)

View all 10 citing papers on Semantic Scholar

Quick Questions About This Study

Rats were exposed to a 915 MHz radiofrequency identification (RFID) signal.
Exposure was set at a whole-body specific absorption rate of 2 W/kg for 8 hours per day, 5 days per week, for 2 weeks.
Red blood cell numbers, hemoglobin, hematocrit, and red blood cell indices were increased in the RFID-exposed group compared with the cage-control and sham-exposed groups, and the RBC and platelet numbers remained within normal physiologic response ranges.
The number of white blood cells, including lymphocytes, was decreased in RFID-exposed rats.
The researchers stated that these changes do not necessarily indicate that RFID exposure is harmful, as they were within the normal physiological response range.