effects of radiofrequency (cell phones and television) on migraine and headache symptoms in children and adolescents

Background: the present study aimed to assess the possible effects of using mobile phones during pregnancy on headaches and migraines in children and adolescents. objectives: migraine and headache symptoms are attributed to radiofrequency (cell phones and television) in children. it is worth noting that recent studies have not been able to indicate a convincing causal relationship with radiofrequency. methods: the current meta-analysis, organized based on the prisma statement, was performed by searching the relevant articles published in pubmed, cochrane library, web of science, and scopus. original articles published in english from inception until april 1, 2023, were retrieved in this study. the quality of the articles included in the systematic review was scored based on the newcastle-ottawa scale. results: a heterogeneity test was performed for headaches (children, adolescents, and both groups) and migraine. considering that the chi-square test result was not significant (p>0.05), the results of the fixed model were reported. based on the reported results, the odds ratio estimate of the meta-analysis of children's headaches in the fixed model was equal to 1.51. furthermore, the results of the meta-analysis demonstrated that the odds ratio of headache in adolescents was 1.48, and in both groups (children and adolescents), it was 1.51. the meta-analysis on migraine, with only two studies in this field, was equal to 1.52. conclusion: as evidenced by the obtained results, exposure to radiofrequency was related to migraine and headache symptoms. there are no high-quality randomized control trials (rcts) and/ or multiple consistent non-rcts without methodological flaws.