title: Biomagnetic activity in the female breast at various physiological states.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the biomagnetic activity produced physiologically by the various normally occurring states of the female breast: puberty, reproductive age, pregnancy, lactation and menopause.
  
  
  METHODS
  The mammary glands of 90 healthy women were examined using a Superconducting Quantum Interference Device (SQUID).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Biomagnetic activity was low at puberty (105.46+/-3.77 fT/square root(Hz)) and the menopause (111.66+/-25.06 fT/square root(Hz)), but was high during the reproductive years (142.13+/-20.70 fT/square root(Hz)), particularly in the hyperplastic states of late pregnancy (221.86+/-12.14 fT/square root(Hz)) and lactation (252.73+/-54.77 fT/square root(Hz)). The results were statistically significant (p<0.0001 ANOVA test).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our observations indicate the importance of SQUID in understanding the biomagnetic activity of the female breast at the various physiological states of life.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Democritus University of Thrace, Alexandroupolis, Greece.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Sivridis
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Anninos
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Giatromanolaki
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kotini
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Adamopoulos
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Anastasiadis
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001940:Breast / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007774:Lactation / Q000502:physiology; D008280:Magnetics; D008875:Middle Aged