Local SAR evaluation of anatomical human implanted with metallic osteosynthesis plates exposed to UHF radio waves

RF exposure guidelines recognize that an increase in local SAR (specific absorption rate) due to metallic implants is possible, depending upon the size and shape of the implant and the position. In this study, the effect of implanting metallic osteosynthesis plates in the human head region is examined by using FDTD analysis. The main objective is to simulate whether combination of two metallic plates aligned in parallel in the head region could be expected to cause SAR enhancements. An anatomical phantom model is used in which osteosynthesis plates of mandibular fractures are implanted. In the numerical modeling of the osteosynthesis plates, topological morphing operation is used. The peak 10-g averaged SAR dependencies in the mandibular zone are quantitatively investigated with metal plates of various sizes and shapes under far- and near-field exposure conditions.