Author(s): Malla Uzwali, Limbu Nirmala, Das A1, Paudel BH, Mathur NN and Singh PN
Electromagnetic radiations are emitted from mobile phone. Part of these radiations is absorbed by recipients’ body which is in close proximity to the mobile phone. It has been hypothesized that children absorbs more radiation. This is attributed to their thinner skull and small head size. It might have some debilitating effect in children. Hence, purpose of our study was to assess hearing ability of children, age group ranging from 6- 12 years, before and after 10 min exposure to mobile phone which receives and transmits radiation of 1900 MHz and 850 MHz frequencies respectively. Consented by parents, 30 healthy children having normal hearing level (below 25 dB) were recruited for the study. Auditory brainstem response (ABR) of each child was recorded before and after 10 min exposure to mobile phone. ABR was recorded giving rarefaction, condensation and alternate (rarefactioncondensation) click stimulus for consecutive 3 days, restricting to one stimulus a day. Statistically significant increase in latency of wave III and Interpeak latency (III-V) was recorded with alternate click stimulus, showing some effects on hearing ability of children. However, no measurable changes were observed with rarefaction and condensation click stimulus. Further study is suggested to explore the mechanism of latency change due to alternate click stimulus, and whether it is within physiological range or beyond.