Time trends in brain tumour mortality and cellular phone use were investigated in Switzerland.
Annual age-standardized brain tumour mortality rates per 100,000 person-years were calculated on the basis of the Swiss national mortality registry from 1969 to 2002. Time trend analyses were performed for six different age groups in men and women separately. The study period was divided in two parts before and after 1987, when the analog mobile technology was introduced in Switzerland.
Age-standardized mortality rates for brain tumour ranged between 3.7 and 6.7 for men and 2.5 to 4.4 for women per 100,000 person-years from 1969 to 2002. Increasing rates were observed between 1969 and 1987 in most age groups, most probably due to improved diagnosis and changes in clinical practices.
The authors concluded that they found no evidence of an increase in brain tumour mortality in Switzerland after introduction of mobile phone technology.
Ecological analyses, like this one, are limited in their ability to reveal potentially small increases in risk for diseases with a long latency period.
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