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Effect of chronic intermittent exposure to AM radiofrequency field on responses to various types of noxious stimuli in growing rats.

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Mathur R. · 2008

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Chronic intermittent radiofrequency field exposure in growing rats increased the emotional component of phasic pain while reducing tonic pain responses.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Researchers exposed growing rats to a radiofrequency field (73.5 MHz amplitude modulated, 16 Hz, SAR = 0.4 w/kg) for 45 days at 2 hours per day and recorded their responses to several types of noxious stimuli. The tonic pain rating was also decreased (p < 0.01), which the researchers said indicates analgesia in response to tonic pain. The data suggest that amplitude modulated RF field differentially affects the mechanisms involved in the processing of various noxious stimuli.

Why This Matters

The study measured several distinct pain-related responses in rats, including motor reactions, vocalizations, and thermal withdrawal latencies, to capture different aspects of how the animals processed painful stimuli. Not all measures changed: tail withdrawal latency and the thresholds for motor response and vocalization during stimulus were unaffected, showing that the exposure did not alter every pain pathway equally. A lower vocalization-after-discharge threshold was interpreted by the researchers as an increase in the emotional component of the phasic pain response. The researchers noted that prior reports of altered pain sensation after electromagnetic field exposure involved adults, whereas this study used growing, peripubertal rats.

Exposure Details

SAR
0.4 W/kg
Power Density
1.33 mW/cm²
Source/Device
73.5 MHz amplitude modulated
Exposure Duration
45 d (2 h/d)

Exposure Context

This study used 1.33 mW/cm² for radio frequency:

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: 1.33 mW/cm²Extreme Concern - 1,000 µW/m²FCC Limit - 10M µW/m²Effects 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 73.5 MHz exposure sits relative to common EMF sources.Where This Frequency Sits on the EMF SpectrumELFVLFLF / MFHF / VHFUHFSHFmm10 Hz100 GHzThis study: 73.5 MHzPower lines50/60 HzCell phones~1 GHzWiFi2.4 GHz5G mm28 GHzLogarithmic scale

Study Details

To study the effect of Chronic Intermittent Exposure to AM Radiofrequency Field on Responses to Various Types of Noxious Stimuli in Growing Rats

We studied the pattern of nociceptive responses to various noxious stimuli in growing rats exposed t...

The TFL was not affected, HPL was decreased (p < 0.01), and the thresholds of TF and VD were not aff...

The data suggest that amplitude modulated RF field differentially affects the mechanisms involved in the processing of various noxious stimuli.

Cite This Study
Mathur R. (2008). Effect of chronic intermittent exposure to AM radiofrequency field on responses to various types of noxious stimuli in growing rats. Electromagn Biol Med. 27(3):266-276, 2008.
Show BibTeX
@article{r._2008_effect_of_chronic_intermittent_142,
  author = {Mathur R.},
  title = {Effect of chronic intermittent exposure to AM radiofrequency field on responses to various types of noxious stimuli in growing rats.},
  year = {2008},
  
  url = {https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18821202/},
}
PubMed: 18821202

Cited By (13 papers)

View all 13 citing papers on Semantic Scholar

Quick Questions About This Study

The rats were exposed to a 73.5 MHz amplitude modulated field at 16 Hz with a SAR of 0.4 w/kg.
The rats were exposed for 2 hours per day over 45 days.
Tail withdrawal latency and the thresholds for tail motor response and vocalization during stimulus were not affected, while hind paw withdrawal latency and the vocalization-after-discharge threshold were decreased.
The tonic pain rating was decreased (p < 0.01), which the researchers said indicates analgesia in response to tonic pain.
The data suggest that amplitude modulated RF field differentially affects the mechanisms involved in the processing of various noxious stimuli.