

Magnets in the iPad2 and its smart cover can turn off defibrillator implants - chemcoder
http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130512/A_NEWS0803/305120312

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amirmc
_"The magnet mode is a feature of ICDs which allows emergency suppression of
defibrillator therapy when a donut magnet is placed over the device ... With
the removal of the magnet, tachycardia sensing and therapy are restored"_ [1]

If this applies to all ICDs equally then the risk is limited to the time that
the iPad2 remains on their chest (e.g snoozing, reading in bed, etc).

I think projects like this are cool. If there was a 30% chance of a relative's
pacemaker being affected by an external device, I'd think twice about buying
them said device.

[1]
[http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=rCTdTU9L12EC&pg=PA221...](http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=rCTdTU9L12EC&pg=PA221&lpg=PA221&dq=magnet+mode+defibrillator&source=bl&ots=-E2TQjDo5_&sig=9YP4fJ6ZSMfrpgZgrQrqwsNQA5Q&hl=en&sa=X&ei=9oOPUcH4L6ad0AWN54CwBA&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=magnet%20mode%20defibrillator&f=false)

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shabble
maybe it should give them little reminder shocks periodically while the magnet
is emplaced? If it's exclusively for disabling it in emergency situations,
then a tingle every couple of minutes would be the least of the patient's
worries.

I wonder if it's possible to do that safely without requiring additional
electrodes (because shocking the heart itself is probably a bad idea, unless
necessary)

Edit: Or maybe just a little piezo disc or something; "Oops, daddy's started
bleeping again."

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thedrbrian
I'm amazed that only the apple magnets do this and not any other magnets at
all.

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experiment0
> So a person who lays the iPad2 on their chest while napping, or holds one on
> their chest while reading, could trigger magnet mode.

I think the point the article is trying to make is that holding an iPad close
to your chest is both more likely to happen, and less noticeable than holding
a magnet to your chest.

~~~
shabble
I wonder if those quack 'magnetic wrist {pain reliever,travel/seasickness
preventer} bracelet' things are strong enough to affect it?

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misnome
> "stunning the medical and tech communities"

Well, the tech community is certainly stunned, but not for the reasons you
think.....

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shabble
It seems odd that the designers of such a potentially life-critical device
would choose a method with such potential for accidental triggering for such a
function.

I guess it's a tradeoff between likelihood of accidental triggering vs not
having the capability to disable it in a genuine emergency due to lack of
equipment.

Then again, if your paramedics/hospital don't immediately have a (strong
enough) magnet on hand, you're no better off than them not having the special
disabling-device. I guess magnets are cheaper, and don't require batteries,
but is that a sufficient reason to use such a signal?

Even something like requiring a varying magnetic field at some fixed frequency
(and of a high enough power to not trigger on RF/spurious EM) would be much
less likely to accidentally trigger, and the disable-device could be an
electromagnet driven by an oscillator.

Any other ideas why this method might have been chosen?

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outericky
Apparently the iPad manual states that as such. Not a discovery, though
apparently no one reads the manuals. Not really news.... All magnets can be
problematic.

"iPad has magnets along the left edge of the device and on the right side of
the front glass, which may interfere with pacemakers, defibrillators, or other
medical devices. The iPad Smart Cover and iPad Smart Case also contain
magnets. Maintain at least 6 inches (approximately 15 cm) of separation
between your pacemaker or defibrillator and iPad, the iPad Smart Cover, or the
iPad Smart Case."

