Assessment of induced SAR in children exposed to electromagnetic plane waves between 10 MHz and 5.6 GHz.

PAPER pubmed Physics in medicine and biology 2010 Exposure assessment Effect: unclear Evidence: Moderate

Read original paper → DOI: 10.1088/0031-9155/55/11/009 PMID: 20463374 Evidence Lab

Abstract

To avoid potentially adverse health effects of electromagnetic fields (EMF), the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) has defined EMF reference levels from the basic restrictions on the induced whole-body-averaged specific absorption rate (SAR(wb)) and the peak 10 g spatial-averaged SAR (SAR(10g)). The objective of this study is to assess if the SAR in children remains below the basic restrictions upon exposure at the reference levels. Finite difference time domain (FDTD) modeling was used to calculate the SAR in six children and two adults when exposed to all 12 orthogonal plane wave configurations. A sensitivity study showed an expanded uncertainty of 53% (SAR(wb)) and 58% (SAR(10g)) due to variations in simulation settings and tissue properties. In this study, we found that the basic restriction on the SAR(wb) is occasionally exceeded for children, up to a maximum of 45% in small children. The maximum SAR(10g) values, usually found at body protrusions, remain under the limit for all scenarios studied. Our results are in good agreement with the literature, suggesting that the recommended ICNIRP reference levels may need fine tuning.

AI evidence extraction

At a glance

Study type

Exposure assessment

Effect direction

unclear

Population

children and adults

Sample size

Exposure

Evidence strength

Moderate

Confidence: 70% · Peer-reviewed: yes

Main findings

The study found that the basic restriction on whole-body-averaged SAR is occasionally exceeded in children, up to 45% in small children, while peak 10 g SAR values remain below limits for all scenarios. Results align with existing literature and suggest ICNIRP reference levels may require adjustment.

Outcomes measured

whole-body-averaged specific absorption rate (SARwb)
peak 10 g spatial-averaged SAR (SAR10g)

Limitations

Uncertainty of 53% for SARwb and 58% for SAR10g due to simulation and tissue property variations
Modeling study with limited sample size (6 children, 2 adults)

Suggested hubs

who-icnirp (0.9)
Study assesses compliance with ICNIRP SAR reference levels in children.

View raw extracted JSON

{
    "study_type": "exposure_assessment",
    "exposure": {
        "band": null,
        "source": null,
        "frequency_mhz": null,
        "sar_wkg": null,
        "duration": null
    },
    "population": "children and adults",
    "sample_size": 8,
    "outcomes": [
        "whole-body-averaged specific absorption rate (SARwb)",
        "peak 10 g spatial-averaged SAR (SAR10g)"
    ],
    "main_findings": "The study found that the basic restriction on whole-body-averaged SAR is occasionally exceeded in children, up to 45% in small children, while peak 10 g SAR values remain below limits for all scenarios. Results align with existing literature and suggest ICNIRP reference levels may require adjustment.",
    "effect_direction": "unclear",
    "limitations": [
        "Uncertainty of 53% for SARwb and 58% for SAR10g due to simulation and tissue property variations",
        "Modeling study with limited sample size (6 children, 2 adults)"
    ],
    "evidence_strength": "moderate",
    "confidence": 0.6999999999999999555910790149937383830547332763671875,
    "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
    "keywords": [
        "SAR",
        "children",
        "electromagnetic fields",
        "ICNIRP",
        "finite difference time domain modeling",
        "exposure assessment"
    ],
    "suggested_hubs": [
        {
            "slug": "who-icnirp",
            "weight": 0.90000000000000002220446049250313080847263336181640625,
            "reason": "Study assesses compliance with ICNIRP SAR reference levels in children."
        }
    ]
}

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AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract/metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This content is for informational purposes only and is not medical advice.

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