Humans are exposed daily to artiˆcial and naturally occurring magneticˆelds that originate from many diŠerent sources. We review recent studies that examine the biological eŠects of and medical applications involving electromagneticˆelds, review the properties of static and pulsed electromagneticˆelds that aŠect biological systems, describe the use of a pulsed electromagneticˆeld in combination with an anticancer agent as an example of a medical application that incorporates an electromagneticˆeld, and discuss the recently updated safety guidelines for static electromagneticˆelds. The most notable modiˆcations to the 2009 International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection guidelines are the increased exposure limits, especially for those who work with or near electromagnetiĉ elds (occupational exposure limits). The recommended increases in exposure were determined using recent scientiˆc evidence obtained from animal and human studies. Several studies since the 1994 publication of the guidelines have examined the eŠects on humans after exposure to high static electromagneticˆelds (up to 9.4 tesla), but additional research is needed to ascertain further the safety of strong electromagneticˆelds.

Conductivity tensor maps of the rat brain were obtained using diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Signal attenuations in the cortex and the corpus callosum were measured using the stimulated echo acquisition mode (STEAM) sequence with b factors up to 6000 s/mm(2). Our previously published method was improved to infer 3 x 3 conductivity tensor at the low-frequency limit. The conductivity tensor of the tissue was inferred from the fast component of the diffusion tensor and a fraction of the fast component. The mean conductivity (MC) of the cortex and the corpus callosum was 0.52 and 0.62 S/m, respectively. Diffusion-weighted images were obtained with b factors up to 4500 s/mm(2). Conductivity tensor images were calculated from the fast diffusion tensor images. Tissues with highly anisotropic cellular structures, such as the corpus callosum, the internal capsule, and the trigeminal nerve, exhibited high anisotropy in conductivity. The resulting values corresponded to conductivities at the low-frequency limit because our method assumed electric currents flowing only through extracellular fluid.

Heat strain was the highest in the first half of afternoon work. The number of dehydrated workers increased during this shift because of insufficient water intake. Adequate hydration is required to decrease the risk of heat-related disorders among construction workers in the summer.

High exposures to electromagnetic fields (EMF) can occur near certain medical devices in the hospital environment. A systematic assessment of medical occupational EMF exposure could help to clarify where more attention to occupational safety may be needed. This paper seeks to identify sources of high exposure for hospital workers and compare the published exposure data to occupational limits in the European Union. A systematic search for peer-reviewed publications was conducted via PubMed and Scopus databases. Relevant grey literature was collected via a web search. For each publication, the highest measured magnetic flux density or internal electric field strength per device and main frequency component was extracted. For low frequency fields, high action levels may be exceeded for magnetic stimulation, MRI gradient fields and movement in MRI static fields. For radiofrequency fields, the action levels may be exceeded near devices for diathermy, electrosurgery and hyperthermia and in the radiofrequency field inside MRI scanners. The exposure limit values for internal electric field may be exceeded for MRI and magnetic stimulation. For MRI and magnetic stimulation, practical measures can limit worker exposure. For diathermy, electrosurgery and hyperthermia, additional calculations are necessary to determine if SAR limits may be exceeded in some scenarios.