SHORT WAVE DIATHERMY – PRELIMINARY REPORT
FRANK HAMMOND KRUSEN, M.D. · 1939
This 1939 medical study documented human biological responses to therapeutic RF electromagnetic fields decades before wireless technology emerged.
Plain English Summary
This 1939 preliminary report by Dr. F.H. Krusen examined short wave diathermy, a medical therapy using radiofrequency electromagnetic fields to generate deep tissue heating. The study represents early medical research into controlled EMF exposure for therapeutic purposes, documenting effects of RF radiation on human patients during clinical treatment.
Why This Matters
This 1939 research represents a fascinating historical perspective on medical EMF exposure that predates our modern wireless world by decades. While diathermy intentionally uses high-power RF fields for therapeutic heating, the study highlights how the medical community was already grappling with EMF bioeffects in controlled clinical settings. What's particularly relevant today is that diathermy devices operate in similar frequency ranges to many modern wireless technologies, yet deliver vastly higher power levels than cell phones or WiFi. This early medical research demonstrates that RF electromagnetic fields can produce measurable biological effects in humans, a principle that remains central to current EMF health debates. The difference lies in dosage and intent - diathermy deliberately uses high-intensity fields for therapeutic benefit, while today's concern focuses on chronic low-level exposures from ubiquitous wireless devices.
Finding
This preparation is said to be sufficiently concentrated in growth hormone for maximal growth effects to be obtained in test animals by the daily administration of as little as 1 mg. of dry substance.
In their words
“This preparation is said to be sufficiently concentrated in growth hormone for maximal growth effects to be obtained in test animals by the daily administration of as little as 1 mg. of dry substance.”
Exposure Information
Specific exposure levels were not quantified in this study.
Study Details
To critically analyze the therapeutic claims of short wave diathermy and evaluate its safety and effectiveness based on available clinical data and experimental evidence.
The document presents a review of existing literature and clinical observations regarding short wave...
The document presents evidence that ultra-short waves exhibit no selective temperature or electromag...
Short wave and ultra-short wave diathermy machines should be improved in construction, with manufacturers specifying wave lengths and output in watts. An accurate method of measuring dosage needs to be perfected. More data concerning the physiologic effects of these waves should be amassed. The apparatus is not entirely safe or simple to operate, and extensive employment at present can lead only to unsatisfactory results and may cause condemnation of a method of treatment that might otherwise be found serviceable.
Show BibTeX
@article{short_wave_diathermy_preliminary_report_g6130,
author = {FRANK HAMMOND KRUSEN and M.D.},
title = {SHORT WAVE DIATHERMY – PRELIMINARY REPORT},
year = {1939},
}