title: Does Occupational Exposure of Shahid Dastghieb International Airport Workers to Radiofrequency Radiation Affect Their Short Term Memory and Reaction Time?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Airport workers are continuously exposed to different levels of radiofrequency microwave (RF/MW) radiation emitted by radar equipments. Radars are extensively used in military and aviation industries. Over the past several years, our lab has focused on the health effects of exposure to different sources of electromagnetic fields such as cellular phones, mobile base stations, mobile phone jammers, laptop computers, radars, dentistry cavitrons and MRI. The main goal of this study was to investigate if occupational exposure of Shahid Dastghieb international airport workers to radiofrequency radiation affects their short term memory and reaction time.
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty two airport workers involved in duties at control and approach tower (21 males and 11 females), with the age range of 27-67 years old (mean age of 37.38), participated voluntary in this study. On the other hand, 29 workers (13 males, and 16 females) whose offices were in the city with no exposure history to radar systems were also participated in this study as the control group. The employees' reaction time and short term memory were analyzed using a standard visual reaction time (VRT) test software and the modified Wechsler memory scale test, respectively.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean± SD values for the reaction times of the airport employees (N=32) and the control group (N=29) were 0.45±0.12 sec and 0.46±0.17 sec, respectively.  Moreover, in the four subset tests; i.e. paired words, forward digit span, backward digit span and word recognition, the following points were obtained for the airport employees and the control group, respectively: (i) pair words test: 28.00±13.13 and 32.07±11.65, (ii) forward digit span: 8.38±1.40 and 9.03±1.32, (iii) backward digit span: 5.54±1.87 and 6.31±1.46, and (iv) word recognition: 5.73±2.36 and 6.50±1.93. These differences were not statistically significant.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The occupational exposure of the employees to the RF radiation in Shahid Dastghieb international airport does not have any significant detrimental effect on their reaction time as well as short term memory.
authors.affiliation: Ionizing and Non-ionizing Radiation Protection Research Center (INIRPRC), Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jarideh
authors.affiliation: Ionizing and Non-ionizing Radiation Protection Research Center (INIRPRC), Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Taeb
authors.affiliation: Shahid Dastghieb International Airport, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: S M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Pishva
authors.affiliation: Ionizing and Non-ionizing Radiation Protection Research Center (INIRPRC), Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Haghani
authors.affiliation: Radiation Research Center, Nuclear Engineering Department, School of Mechanics, Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sina
authors.affiliation: Medical Student, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: S A R
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Mortazavi
authors.affiliation: Ionizing and Non-ionizing Radiation Protection Research Center (INIRPRC), Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Hosseini
authors.affiliation: Department of Biostatistics, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nematollahi
authors.affiliation: School of Paramedical Sciences, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shi¬raz, Iran.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Shokrpour
authors.affiliation: Ionizing and Non-ionizing Radiation Protection Research Center (INIRPRC), Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hassan Shahi
authors.affiliation: Ionizing and Non-ionizing Radiation Protection Research Center (INIRPRC), Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran ; Medical Physics and Medical Engineering Department, School of Medicine, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran.
authors.forename: S M J
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Mortazavi
keywords: Airport; Cognitive Functions; Electromagnetic fields; Occupational Exposure; Reaction Time; Short Term Memory