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Effect of a single 30 min UMTS mobile phone‐like exposure on the thermal pain threshold of young healthy volunteers.

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Vecsei Z, Csathó A, Thuróczy G, Hernádi I · 2013

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A single 30-minute UMTS RF EMF exposure at 1.75 W/kg was associated with a reduced desensitization effect between repeated pain stimulations, but thermal pain thresholds remained intact.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Researchers tested the effects of UMTS RF EMF exposure on the thermal pain threshold of 20 young adult volunteers, measuring responses on the surface of the fingers. The exposure lasted 30 minutes and was applied to the head through a patch antenna, with SAR kept constant at 1.75 W/kg. Thermal pain thresholds were intact, but a reduced desensitization effect between repeated stimulations was observed on the contralateral side during genuine UMTS exposure. Subjective pain ratings were marginally decreased in the genuine exposure condition only.

Why This Matters

Compared to control and sham conditions, thermal pain thresholds were intact in the genuine UMTS exposure condition. Subjective pain ratings were collected blockwise using a visual analogue rating scale. The researchers described their findings as pioneering information about human pain sensation in relation to RF EMF exposure. The authors suggested these results may help cover an existing gap between safety research and applied biomedical science targeting the potential biological effects of environmental RF EMFs.

Exposure Details

SAR
1.75 W/kg
Source/Device
UMTS RF EMF
Exposure Duration
30 min

Exposure Context

This study used 1.75 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: 1.75 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

Study Details

In the present study, therefore, we tested the effects of third generation Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) RF EMF exposure on the thermal pain threshold (TPT) measured on the surface of the fingers of 20 young adult volunteers.

The protocol was initially validated with a topical capsaicin treatment. The exposure time was 30 mi...

Compared to the control and sham conditions, the results provide evidence for intact TPT but a reduc...

Cite This Study
Vecsei Z, Csathó A, Thuróczy G, Hernádi I (2013). Effect of a single 30 min UMTS mobile phone‐like exposure on the thermal pain threshold of young healthy volunteers. Bioelectromagnetics. 2013 Jun 20. doi: 10.1002/bem.21801.
Show BibTeX
@article{z_2013_effect_of_a_single_195,
  author = {Vecsei Z and Csathó A and Thuróczy G and Hernádi I},
  title = {Effect of a single 30 min UMTS mobile phone‐like exposure on the thermal pain threshold of young healthy volunteers.},
  year = {2013},
  doi = {10.1002/bem.21801},
  url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/bem.21801},
}
DOI: 10.1002/bem.21801

Cited By (18 papers)

Quick Questions About This Study

The study used third generation Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) RF EMF exposure, applied to the head through a patch antenna at a SAR of 1.75 W/kg for 30 minutes.
Compared to control and sham conditions, thermal pain thresholds were intact.
A reduced desensitization effect between repeated stimulations was observed, but only on the contralateral side during genuine UMTS exposure.
Subjective pain perception data indicated marginally decreased overall pain ratings in the genuine exposure condition only.
Data were obtained using randomized, placebo-controlled trials in a double-blind manner.