Magnetophospenes in humans exposed to ELF MF up to 50 mT, a threshold study

Abstract

Although magnetophosphene perception is the most reliable reported effect on acute human neurophysiological responses to extremely low frequency (ELF) magnetic field (MF) exposure, current knowledge is based on small sample size, non-replicated experiments. In this study, we established MF levels triggering magnetophosphenes at 20, 50, 60 and 100 Hz in humans. Magnetophosphene perception and EEG were collected in 55 magnetic flux density conditions randomly delivered in each frequency group (2 experiments, total n=145). Results indicate that threshold values 1) need to be reported as a function of dB/dt instead of flux density, and 2) are frequency-dependent (higher sensitivity to lower frequencies). No clear trend was found in EEG data.