Is it true that the iPhone 12 can affect pacemakers and other devices that regulate the heartbeat?

At the beginning of January 2021, a study appeared that stated that the new iPhone 12 may have an effect on pacemakers. We checked whether this is actually true.

“Researchers have found that the iPhone 12 can deactivate the pacemaker,” some English-language publications claimed in January. Later headers were adjusted, now we are not talking about pacemakers, but about implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs).

The authors cite a study published in early January in the journal Heart Rhythm. According to the articles, if a smartphone is placed close to the heart of a user who has an ICD installed, the magnetic interference may affect the installed device and cause problems with its operation.

Although the published materials initially mentioned pacemakers, the researchers wanted to know whether the iPhone 12's magnetic field could affect the ICD. 

ICD is device like a pacemaker. An ICD is needed to monitor the heart's rhythm and is usually used to treat patients at high risk for serious heart rhythm problems (such as ventricular fibrillation or ventricular tachycardia) to prevent sudden cardiac arrest. Moreover, all modern ICDs include into itself and the function of pacemakers. Depending on the severity of the rhythm disorder, the device can generate either a series of electrical impulses to correct the rhythm, or a small (cardioversion) or large (defibrillation) electrical shock.

In Heart Rhythm magazine in early January, indeed was published an article stating that smartphones with magnets inside can interfere with the ICD: “When an iPhone [12] was brought close to the ICD in the left chest area, an immediate ICD response was observed and remained throughout the test.” The authors of the article warned that the new generation of iPhone could potentially slow down such devices or interfere with their operation, especially if they are carried in upper pockets at chest level.

At the same time, there is a possibility that the iPhone 12 is not worth highlighting separately. Apple in general admitsthat the iPhone can interfere with medical devices such as pacemakers and defibrillators, but argues that the iPhone 12 is not a unique case. Creators declare: While iPhone 12 contains more magnets than previous models, that doesn't mean they create more impact on medical devices.

In addition, researchers notethat other gadgets that contain magnets could potentially affect pacemakers and ICDs in the same way. If the device has a so-called reed switch A switch is an electromechanical device that changes the state of a connected circuit under the influence of a magnetic field, and there is a possibility of influence, the authors of the study believe. Including the switch may be “stuck” in one position: on or off.

Both ICDs and pacemakers have this type of switch. Therefore, the magnetic effect of the iPhone 12 is possible on both ICDs and pacemakers, despite the fact that the study itself focused on the former.

Although the scope of the scientific work is small and it presents the results of only one experiment, the publication proves the possibility of the iPhone 12 influencing medical devices such as ICDs and pacemakers. But there is no need to panic; it is not difficult to avoid such influence. It is enough not to bring smartphones too close to your chest.

Is it true

What do our verdicts mean?

Read on the topic:

1. Can an iPhone 12 Disable Pacemakers or Other Cardiac Devices?
2. Life Saving Therapy Inhibition by Phones Containing Magnets