Microwave attenuation of ethanol-induced hypothermia: ethanol tolerance, time course, exposure duration, and dose response studies med./bio.

Four experiments were conducted to quantify the attenuation by microwave irradiation of ethanol-induced hypothermia: One experiment (tolerance) examined whether the microwave interaction with ethanol is related to processes that contribute to the development of tolerance to the hypothermic effect of ethanol. Two additional experiments (irradiation duration and effect duration) determined the duration of irradiation necessary to produce an attentuation of ethanol hypothermia at a particular dose of ethanol and the persistence of this effect. A final experiment (dose response) studies the interaction between microwave irradiation and various doses of ethanol.

• animal
• rat/Long-Evans
• whole body

The results confirm that the hypothermic effect of ethanol can be attenuated by low-level microwave irradiation.
Tolerance experiment: It is demonstrated that while this effect persists beyond the initial exposure session, microwave irradiation contributes little to the rate of tolerance development. The data also suggest that there was no cumulative effect of daily microwave irradiation on the hypothermic response.
Irradiation duration experiment: It is demonstrated that the attenuation effect requires at least 45 min of irradiation, while the data of the duration of attenuation experiment demonstrate the acute nature of microwave attenuation of ethanol hypothermia.
Dose-response experiment: It is shown that the attenuation of ethanol hypothermia varies significantly with the dosage of ethanol injected. The difference in colonic temperature between exposed and sham-exposed groups was greater at lower doses than at higher doses.