News

FSM Science Brunch 26

Posted on May 19, 2017

The Swiss Research Foundation for Electricity and Mobile Communication (FSM; Zurich, Switzerland) invites interested persons to the 26th Science Brunch with the title “acceptance of power lines and energy transition” on June 29, 2017. The event series "Science Brunch" was developed to provide the interested public with a platform for the discussion of current issues related to electricity and mobile communications and it takes place twice a year. Visit the FSM homepage for further information and registration (information in German only).

femu systematic review on biological effects of static electric fields

Posted on May 2, 2017

The Journal Environmental Health has published a systematic review performed by femu with the title: “Biological effects of exposure to static electric fields in humans and vertebrates: a systematic review“. The study was carried out in view of the increasing importance of high-voltage direct-current transmission lines and missing limits for static electric fields in the environment. Based on 48 identified studies, the authors found no consistent indications for adverse effects of static electric fields, but good evidence that humans and animals are able to perceive them. The conditions that affect thresholds for detection should be further investigated. The study was funded within the framework of BMBF Forschungscampus Flexible Electric Networks (FEN) (in German).
The article can be found in the EMF-Portal and is available for free download on the Environmental Health homepage.

Interference thresholds of cardiac pacemakers in electrical and magnetic 50 Hz fields

Posted on May 2, 2017

Together with the Clinic for Cardiology, Pneumology, Angiology and Internal Intensive Medicine (Medical Clinic I) of the Uniklinik Aachen, femu has published in the Journal Circulation of the American Heart Association the following article, "In Vivo Study of Electromagnetic Interference With Pacemakers Caused by Everyday Electric and Magnetic Fields". In this study, the interference of cardiac pacemakers in humans was investigated in 50 Hz fields with electrical field strengths between 0.5 kV/m to 30 kV/m and magnetic flux densities between 10 μT and 2550 μT. With this unique approach under worst-case conditions, the threshold of the first functional interference of the implant was identified and therefore, for the first time, the interference thresholds from a large group of cardiac pacemakers are available. These can now be related to international and national regulations for the protection against harmful effects of EMF, in which people with implants have generally not been considered up to now.
The article can be found in the EMF-Portal as well as on the Circulation homepage.

Update: BioEM 2017 - Abstract Submission Deadline Extended

Posted on Feb 15, 2017

The deadline for abstract submissions for the BioEM 2017 in Hangzhou, China, has been extended to February 28, 2017. Moreover, the planned plenary talks, workshops and tutorials have now been published. You can find the original announcement on the BioEM 2017 website.

ICNIRP Statement on Diagnostic Devices Using NIR

Posted on Feb 6, 2017

The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) has released its Statement on Diagnostic Devices Using Non-Ionizing Radiation: Existing Regulations and Potential Health Risks. The statement reviews the range of diagnostic non-ionizing radiation (NIR) devices currently used in clinical settings, documents the relevant regulations and policies covering patients and health care workers and analyzes exposure scenarios and potential health dangers. Follow the link to the ICNIRP homepage for a free download.

BioEM 2017: deadline for abstracts is February 15

Posted on Feb 6, 2017

A short reminder: The deadline for submission of abstracts for the BioEM 2017 in Hangzhou, China, is February 15, 2017. The registration for the conference is also open. Visit the BioEM 2017 website for further information and registration.

Swiss Council of States against higher limits for mobile phone base stations

Posted on Dec 14, 2016

After intensive discussion, the Swiss Council of States has spoken out against an increase of the limit values for mobile phone base stations. The National Council wanted the Council of States to revise the Ordinance on the Protection from Non-Ionizing Radiation because the current conditions were too restrictive from its point of view. However, the Council of States rejected the revision by 20 votes to 19 with 3 abstentions, thus maintaining the current limits. Read the original announcement on the homepage of the Swiss Parliament (in German).

BioEM2017 in Hangzhou, China

Posted on Nov 8, 2016

The 2017 joint meeting of the Bioelectromagnetics Society (BEMS) and the European BioElectromagnetics Association (EBEA) will be held from June 5 to 9 2017 in the West Lake Villa in Hangzhou, China. The official BioEM2017 website has now been released and provides information and dates on the meeting.

Upcoming ICNIRP workshop

Posted on Nov 7, 2016

On December 2, 2016, an International Workshop on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection will take place in Tokyo, Japan. The main topics of the workshop are the revision of the ICNIRP high frequency guidelines and non-ionizing radiation protection related to 5G system. The workshop is opened for scientific experts of non-ionizing radiation. ICNIRP announces to post further information regarding the program soon. Read the original article on the ICNIRP homepage.

Delay of ICNIRP high frequency guidelines release

Posted on Oct 17, 2016

The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) has been working on its new high-frequency guidelines, which will cover the 100 kHz – 300 GHz range and will replace the high frequency portion of the 1998 ICNIRP guidelines. A draft of the new guidelines was presented and discussed at ICNIRP’s 8th International NIR Workshop in Cape Town, South Africa, in May 2016. At that time, ICNIRP was planning to have a public consultation document ready by the end of 2016. However, as some of the issues that were raised regarding the HF guidelines are requiring considerable additional thought and development, this time frame is no longer feasible. ICNIRP will provide updates on the progress in due course. Read the original news on the ICNIRP homepage.

Start of BioEM2016 in Ghent, Belgium

Posted on Jun 2, 2016

The 2016 joint meeting of the Bioelectromagnetics Society (BEMS) and the European BioElectromagnetics Association (EBEA) BioEM2016 is going to open this Sunday. It will take place from June 5 to June 10, 2016 at the convention center “Het Pand” in Ghent, Belgium. The online registration will close tomorrow, June 3. Please note that there is no on-site registration. The femu (Research Center for Bioelectromagnetic Interaction) and the team of EMF-Portal are going to be on-site with several posters and presentations. We are looking forward to meet you there to answer your questions and hear your suggestions! We are going to present the following topics:

Presentation: Factors determining susceptibility of cardiovascular implantable electronic devices with bipolar leads to ELF-EMF (Session 6, Tuesday, 17.00)

Presentation: Study on the Interference of Cardiovascular Implantable Electronic Devices (CIED) Exposed to Magnetic Fields up to 200 kHz (Session 6, Tuesday, 17.20)

Presentation: Is there evidence of biological effects from WLAN and comparable electromagnetic fields in everyday exposure situations? Systematic review of experimental studies (Session 12, Thursday, 14.00)

Poster: Detection thresholds for static electric fields from high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission lines in human subjects (PA-111, Poster-Session A, Monday, 14.30)

Poster: Review on the scientific basics of the international technical specification IEC TS 60479 on limiting electrical hazards for human beings and livestock (PA-217, Poster-Session A, Monday, 14.30)

Poster: Relaunch EMF-Portal 2016: Redesign, Consolidation and Modernization of the IT infrastructure making the EMF-Portal ready for the Future (PB-214, Poster Session B, Tuesday, 14.00)

Poster: Scientific literature database on the electrophysiological effects of electric current: A valuable
expansion of the EMF-Portal (PB-216, Poster Session B, Tuesday, 14.00)

Poster: Health and biological effects of static electric fields on humans and vertebrates: A systematic
Review (PB-220, Poster Session B, Tuesday, 14.00)

Follow-up: 8th International NIR Workshop

Posted on Jun 2, 2016

The 8th International NIR (non-ionizing radiation) workshop of the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) took place from 9-11 May. The slides from the presentations are now available for free on the ICNIRP website. (Please note: the link leads to general information about the conference belonging to the tab “Info”. However, the slides are found following the tab “Program” to the right.)

FSM Science Brunch 24

Posted on May 4, 2016

The Swiss Research Foundation for Electricity and Mobile Communication (FSM; Zurich, Switzerland) invites interested persons to the 24th Science Brunch with the title “Cellular and Molecular Effects of EMF” on June 23, 2016. The event wants to provide insight into the cellular and molecular EMF research to date and give the opportunity to exchange views and opinions. The event series "Science Brunch" was developed to provide the interested public with a platform for the discussion of current issues related to mobile communications and it takes place twice a year. Visit the FSM homepage for further information and registration (information in German only).

2nd Update: BioEM2016 in Ghent, Belgium

Posted on Apr 25, 2016

The early registration deadline for the 2016 joint meeting of the Bioelectromagnetics Society (BEMS) and the European BioElectromagnetics Association (EBEA) from June 5 to June 10, 2016 at the convention center “Het Pand” in Ghent, Belgium has been extended with one week. If you want to register at lower rates, you should register before the end of Friday, 29th of April. Meanwhile, the meeting program has been published. The femu (Research Center for Bioelectromagnetic Interaction) will be represented on site with several posters and platform presentations as well. All information on the meeting and the registration link can be found on the official BioEM2016 website.

Update: EBEA school in Erice 2016 – travel support

Posted on Mar 4, 2016

The 8th course of the International School of Bioelectromagnetics “Alessandro Chiabrera”: “Electromagnetic Fields and the Nervous System" of EBEA (European Bioelectromagnetics Association) will take place from 11 to 16 April, 2016 in Erice, Italy (see also EMF-Portal news from 23 June 2015). The conference program can be found on the EBEA website. COST (European Association of Science and Technology) provides at least 13 grants of 650€ each to participants for travel support while the participation fee for the conference has been reduced to 800€ for COST grantees. The application deadline for the funding is 11 March. All information can be found here.

BfS publication: International comparison of EMF limits

Posted on Mar 2, 2016

The German Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS) has commissioned a study, where relevant international regulations for limiting exposure for the general population in all areas of non-ionizing radiation are analyzed and compared. The publication consists of two volumes. The first volume includes regulations for electric, magnetic and electromagnetic fields in the range 0 Hz - 300 GHz and the second volume comprises regulations on optical radiation. The report is available free via the BfS homepage (only in German).

Free download of IEEE standards

Posted on Mar 2, 2016

The IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) grants public access to view and download current individual standards as part of the IEEE Get Program. The Get Program is supported by industry and government and allows, among others, the download of the “IEEE C95™ standards: Safety Levels with Respect to Human Exposure to Radio Frequency Electromagnetic Fields”. The access is free by sending your name and e-mail address and agreeing to the terms of use. Please note that contents may only be available free for a limited period.

Update: BioEM2016 in Ghent, Belgium

Posted on Dec 14, 2015

The 2016 joint meeting of the Bioelectromagnetics Society (BEMS) and the European BioElectromagnetics Association (EBEA) will be held from June 5 to June 10 at the culture and convention center “Het Pand” in Ghent, Belgium. Since our last news coverage (see article from 17 July 2015), further information has been published. All important dates and deadlines of the meeting as well as information for students for the application for student travel supports can now be found on the official BioEM2016 homepage.

Update: 8th International NIR Workshop

Posted on Dec 14, 2015

As already reported in July by the EMF-Portal (see article 8th International NIR Workshop, 20.7.15), the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) will hold its 8th International NIR (non-ionizing radiation) workshop in Cape Town, South Africa, from 9-11 May 2016. Now the program has been put online and the deadline for the submission of abstracts for the poster sessions has been announced (10.4.16). For further information on the program and the abstracts as well as on the registration, please visit the ICNIRP homepage.

ICNIRP Commission 2016-2020

Posted on Dec 14, 2015

As per its statutes, the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) elects its commission members every four years. For the term of office 2016-2020, the election took place at the ICNIRP Annual General Meeting, 18-20 November 2015, San Antonio, USA. Following the call for nominations (see EMF-Portal News from 23 June 2015), 24 candidates stood for candidature. Eric van Rongen (Health Council of the Netherlands) was elected as the new chair and Maria Feychting (Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden) as the vice chair. For more information and listing of all commission members, see the ICNIRP homepage.

8th International NIR Workshop

Posted on Jul 20, 2015

The International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) will hold its 8th International NIR (non-ionizing radiation) workshop in Cape Town, South Africa, from 9-11 May 2016. The workshop will take place in conjunction with the IRPA14 Congress on the occasion of International Radiation Protection Association’s (IRPA) 50th anniversary. Amongst others, the update of the ICNIRP Radio Frequency Guidelines that are currently under revision and the related development of the WHO Environmental Health Criteria on Radiofrequency Fields will be a major topic of the workshop. Visit the ICNIRP website for further information on the workshop.

BioEM2016 in Ghent, Belgium

Posted on Jul 20, 2015

The 2016 joint meeting of the Bioelectromagnetics Society (BEMS) and the European BioElectromagnetics Association (EBEA) will be held from June 5 to June 10 at the culture and convention center “Het Pand” in Ghent, Belgium. The official website has just been released and further information on the meeting will be provided there in the future. First impressions of the city and location can be already found on the BioEM2016 website.

EMF-Portal: interactive study overview 50/60 Hz online

Posted on Jul 10, 2015

The EMF-Portal provides interactive diagrams in order to allow users a quick overview about research data in a certain frequency range. The overviews of experimental and epidemiologic studies on the power frequency range (50/60 Hz) have now been released to expand this offer. At present, more than 1550 experimental studies on magnetic fields and electric fields and 440 epidemiologic studies of the 50/60 Hz frequency range have been categorized on two levels according to their endpoints and can be visualized in attractive pie charts. By clicking on a pie slice, all available studies on the corresponding endpoint can be displayed further either in a compact literature list or in a condensed table. The table can be sorted individually by clicking on the table header and contains additional information about the most important exposure parameters of a study and if there is already a detailed extraction available in the EMF-Portal. You can find all study overviews under the point “literature” in the EMF-Portal menu. The project was funded by the German Federal Office for Radiation Protection.

EBEA Erice School 2016

Posted on Jun 23, 2015

The EBEA (European Bioelectromagnetics Association) has announced the 8th course of the International School of Bioelectromagnetics “Alessandro Chiabrera”: Electromagnetic Fields and the Nervous System: Biological Effects, Biophysical Mechanisms, Methods, and Medical Applications. The course will take place from 11 to 18 April, 2016 in Erice, Italy. More information can be found on the EBEA homepage and in the official announcement (pdf file).

ICNIRP elections

Posted on Jun 23, 2015

The call for nominations for the membership in the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) from 2016 to 2020 is now open until 14 September 2015. All IRPA (International Radiation Protection Association) national societies are invited to send their nominations. Forms, information and contact data can be found on the ICNIRP homepage.