# REV-025 — Millimetre waves and skin: what the review found missing

Collection: Reviews & proposed mechanisms (not an original experiment)

Id: REV-025

Heading: Millimetre waves and skin: what the review found missing

Doi: 10.1515/reveh-2020-0056

Title: Physiological effects of millimeter-waves on skin and skin cells: an overview of the to-date published studies

Authors: Dariusz Leszczynski

Author: Leszczynski

Date: 2020-08-24

Kind: Narrative review

Why: Skin is where much of the energy at millimetre-wave frequencies is absorbed, making the biological response of skin an important research question.

Scope: Reviews approximately 99 publications on millimetre waves, skin and skin cells in the context of emerging 5G uses.

Summary: Leszczynski argues that the available skin literature is too limited to support confident health-policy conclusions and calls for stronger biological research before widespread deployment.

Limitations: This is a review of available evidence and gaps, not a new skin experiment or demonstration of injury at typical 5G exposure. Frequencies, doses and study purposes differ across the underlying work.

Topics: Skin and eyes; 5G research gaps

Exposures: Millimetre waves; 5G-related bands

Journal: Reviews on environmental health

Links: https://doi.org/10.1515/reveh-2020-0056; https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32829319/

Access Label: Abstract checked

Source Check: Primary PubMed/Europe PMC metadata and abstract checked; full article not assessed. Linked notice records checked on 21 October 2026.

Citation: Dariusz Leszczynski. Physiological effects of millimeter-waves on skin and skin cells: an overview of the to-date published studies. Reviews on environmental health. 2020. doi:10.1515/reveh-2020-0056.

Related Studies: WEB-032; WEB-033; WEB-040; RF-021; WEB-038

Url: /reviews/rev-025/

Year: 2020

Record Type: review_or_mechanism

Source Url: https://doi.org/10.1515/reveh-2020-0056