EMFs and Alzheimer’s Disease (Letter)

Details

• Personal Author:
  Burnett CA ; Schulte, Paul A.
• Description:
  The results of a mortality study examining the risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD) associated with employment in occupations having potential exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMFs) were summarized and discussed in this letter. The study was based on an analysis of information taken from death certificates for decedents in 27 states. Statistically significant increases in proportionate mortality ratios (PMRs) for AD were found for some occupations with presumed EMF exposure including white males employed as electrical and electronic engineers and electrical and electronic engineers and black males employed as electricians, power transmitter installers, and broadcast operators. Associations between potential EMF exposure and other neurodegenerative diseases were also found. For example, increased PMRs for presenile dementia were found for white males employed as supervisory electricians and power transmitter installers and for increased PMRs for motor neuron disease were found for white males employed as electrical and electronic engineers, miscellaneous electrical and electronic equipment repairers, airline pilots and navigators, and power plant operators. This study did not find an increased risk for AD, but did find a significantly increased risk for presenile dementia in the occupational categories of precision textile, apparel and furnishing machine workers and miscellaneous textile machine operators. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Chronic Disease Electricity Electromagnetic Phenomena Epidemiology Manufacturing And Industrial Facilities Mortality Nervous System Nervous System Diseases Occupational Exposure Occupational Health Risk Assessment Safety

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• Keywords:
  Brain-disorders Chronic-degenerative-diseases Electrical-workers Electromagnetic-fields Machine-operators Mortality-data National Occupational Mortality Surveillance Neurological-diseases NIOSH-Author NOMS Occupational-exposure Risk-analysis

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• ISSN:
  0028-3878
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DSHEFS - Division of Surveillance, Hazard Evaluations, and Field Studies
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  312-313
• Volume:
  49
• Issue:
  1
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:00241504
• Citation:
  Neurology 1997 Jul; 49(1):312-313
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1997
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Neurology
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:942d840390893d9805a63ba48530f74063b964063b19bef3882ad8ecd4d5c9552810d0e72b9c8aaebe9714f0fc5b13c67824f5ab889c311eaace023fb031766b
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/198093/cdc_198093_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 238.35 KB ]