Assessment of Public Exposure From WLANs in the West Bank-Palestine

2017 · No effect · Low evidence

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No effectLow evidencePaper 1336

Study snapshot

Publicationmanual · 2017

Study typeexposure_assessment

Reported directionNo effect

Evidence ratingLow

Abstract

Assessment of Public Exposure From WLANs in the West Bank-Palestine Lahham A, Sharabati A, ALMasri H. Assessment of Public Exposure From WLANs in the West Bank-Palestine. Radiat Prot Dosimetry. 2017 Mar 3:1-5. doi: 10.1093/rpd/ncx028. Abstract A total of 271 measurements were conducted at 69 different sites including homes, hospitals, educational institutions and other public places to assess the exposure to radiofrequency emission from wireless local area networks (WLANs). Measurements were conducted at different distances from 40 to 10 m from the access points (APs) in real life conditions using Narda SRM-3000 selective radiation meter. Three measurements modes were considered at 1 m distance from the AP which are transmit mode, idle mode, and from the client card (laptop computer). All measurements were conducted indoor in the West Bank environment. Power density levels from WLAN systems were found to vary from 0.001 to ~1.9 μW cm-2 with an average of 0.12 μW cm-2. Maximum value found was in university environment, while the minimum was found in schools. For one measurement case where the AP was 20 cm far while transmitting large files, the measured power density reached a value of ~4.5 μW cm-2. This value is however 221 times below the general public exposure limit recommended by the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection, which was not exceeded in any case. Measurements of power density at 1 m around the laptop resulted in less exposure than the AP in both transmit and idle modes as well. Specific absorption rate for the head of the laptop user was estimated and found to vary from 0.1 to 2 mW/kg. The frequency distribution of measured power densities follows a log- normal distribution which is generally typical in the assessment of exposure resulting from sources of radiofrequency emissions. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

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AI evidence extraction

Structured fields below were generated from the paper’s abstract and metadata to make the evidence easier to inspect. Automated extraction may be incomplete or incorrect; verify important details against the original paper.

Study typeexposure_assessment

Effect directionno_effect

PopulationNot supplied

Sample size271

ExposureRF

Evidence strengthLowConfidence: 78% · Peer reviewed: yes

Main findings

Across 271 measurements at 69 indoor sites in the West Bank, WLAN power density ranged from 0.001 to ~1.9 μW cm-2 (average 0.12 μW cm-2). A peak of ~4.5 μW cm-2 was observed at 20 cm from an AP during large file transmission; ICNIRP general public exposure limits were not exceeded in any case. Estimated head SAR for a laptop user ranged from 0.1 to 2 mW/kg, and measurements around the laptop at 1 m were lower than around the AP in transmit and idle modes.

Outcomes measured

Indoor RF power density from WLAN access points (APs) and client devices
Comparison to ICNIRP general public exposure limit
Estimated specific absorption rate (SAR) for head of laptop user
Frequency distribution of measured power densities

Limitations

Frequency (e.g., 2.4 vs 5 GHz) not reported in abstract
Indoor-only measurements in the West Bank; generalizability to other settings not stated
SAR values were estimated (method details not provided in abstract)
Cross-sectional spot measurements; duration/temporal variability not described

View raw extracted JSON

{
  "study_type": "exposure_assessment",
  "exposure": {
    "band": "RF",
    "source": "wi-fi",
    "frequency_mhz": null,
    "sar_wkg": null,
    "duration": null
  },
  "population": null,
  "sample_size": 271,
  "outcomes": [
    "Indoor RF power density from WLAN access points (APs) and client devices",
    "Comparison to ICNIRP general public exposure limit",
    "Estimated specific absorption rate (SAR) for head of laptop user",
    "Frequency distribution of measured power densities"
  ],
  "main_findings": "Across 271 measurements at 69 indoor sites in the West Bank, WLAN power density ranged from 0.001 to ~1.9 μW cm-2 (average 0.12 μW cm-2). A peak of ~4.5 μW cm-2 was observed at 20 cm from an AP during large file transmission; ICNIRP general public exposure limits were not exceeded in any case. Estimated head SAR for a laptop user ranged from 0.1 to 2 mW/kg, and measurements around the laptop at 1 m were lower than around the AP in transmit and idle modes.",
  "effect_direction": "no_effect",
  "limitations": [
    "Frequency (e.g., 2.4 vs 5 GHz) not reported in abstract",
    "Indoor-only measurements in the West Bank; generalizability to other settings not stated",
    "SAR values were estimated (method details not provided in abstract)",
    "Cross-sectional spot measurements; duration/temporal variability not described"
  ],
  "evidence_strength": "low",
  "confidence": 0.78,
  "peer_reviewed_likely": "yes",
  "keywords": [
    "WLAN",
    "Wi-Fi",
    "wireless local area networks",
    "radiofrequency emissions",
    "power density",
    "public exposure",
    "indoor measurements",
    "Narda SRM-3000",
    "ICNIRP",
    "SAR",
    "West Bank",
    "Palestine",
    "schools",
    "universities",
    "hospitals"
  ],
  "suggested_hubs": [
    {
      "slug": "school-wi-fi",
      "weight": 0.7,
      "reason": "Includes measurements in educational institutions and reports minimum values in schools."
    },
    {
      "slug": "who-icnirp",
      "weight": 0.6,
      "reason": "Explicit comparison to ICNIRP general public exposure limits."
    }
  ]
}

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AI-extracted fields are generated from the abstract and metadata and may be incomplete or incorrect. This material is for informational purposes and is not medical advice.

Identifiers and source

DOI: 10.1093/rpd/ncx028
PubMed: Not supplied

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