ID Number		2052
Study Type		Human / Provocation
Model		60 Hz exposure to human volunteers: investigation of evoked potentials in the brain and electromagnetic hypersensitivity.
Details		Human volunteers (n = 23) were exposed to a 60 Hz (ELF) at an external field level of 500 V/m (corresponding to an estimated ~50 uT). The authors report increased evoked potential recordings in a majority of subjects with exposure when analyzed using non-linear methods. The authors suggest a mechanism of electrical field transduction via cellular ion channels. In subsequent studies, the authors report that detection of magnetic fields by neurons and triggering of evoked potentials is mediated by receptors that measure the force exerted by an induced electric field on the cell surface. AUTHORS' ABSTRACT: McCarty et al. 2011 (#5103): Objective: We sought direct evidence that acute exposure to environmental-strength electromagnetic fields (EMFs) could induce somatic reactions (EMF hypersensitivity). Methods: The subject, a female physician self-diagnosed with EMF hypersensitivity, was exposed to an average (over the head) 60-Hz electric field of 300 V/m (comparable with typical environmental-strength EMFs) during controlled provocation and behavioral studies. Results: In a double-blinded EMF provocation procedure specifically designed to minimize unintentional sensory cues, the subject developed temporal pain, headache, muscle twitching, and skipped heartbeats within 100 s after initiation of EMF exposure (p < .05). The symptoms were caused primarily by field transitions (off-on, on-off) rather than the presence of the field, as assessed by comparing the frequency and severity of the effects of pulsed and continuous fields in relation to sham exposure. The subject had no conscious perception of the field as judged by her inability to report its presence more often than in the sham control. Discussion: The subject demonstrated statistically reliable somatic reactions in response to exposure to subliminal EMFs under conditions that reasonably excluded a causative role for psychological processes. Conclusion: EMF hypersensitivity can occur as a bona fide environmentally inducible neurological syndrome.
Findings		Effects
Status		Completed With Publication
Principal Investigator		Louisiana State University, USA
Funding Agency		Private/Instit.
Country		UNITED STATES
References		Marino, AA et al. Neurosci Lett, (2009) 452:119-123 Carrubba, S et al. Int J Radiat Biol, (2009) 85:622-632 McCarty, DE et al. Int J Neurosci., (2011) 121:670-676 Coggon, D Int J Neurosci., (2012) 122:405-(2 pages) Rubin, GJ et al. Int J Neurosci., (2012) 122:401-(1 page) Marino, AA Int J Neurosci., (2013) 123:593-594 Frilot II, C et al. Neuroscience., (2014) 258:184-191
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