Re: Heart Pacemakers and MRI

[joseph.greco@kodak.com]

From: Joseph M. Greco



Rick - I've always practiced prudence around providing advice to persons

with implanted pacemakers, defibrillators, etc.  Did the Doc provide any

references or studies?  We are pretty much bound to follow existing

guidelines like ACGIH.  If there is sufficient data to change this, the Doc

should provide it to the physical agents committee of the ACGIH.



For another opinion, contact Medtronic (major manufacturer of pacers and

defib units) in Minnesota.  Their Tech Services phone is 800-723-4636.



Joe Greco

RSO/LSO

Eastman Kodak

joseph.greco@kodak.com











Rick Mannix <rcmannix@UCI.EDU>@list.vanderbilt.edu on 10/29/2001 05:08:33

PM



Please respond to Rick Mannix <rcmannix@UCI.EDU>



Sent by:  owner-radsafe@list.vanderbilt.edu





To:   radsafe@list.vanderbilt.edu

cc:

Subject:  Heart Pacemakers and MRI





I attended a meeting last week during which MRI safety issues were

discussed. Naturally, the topic of heart pacemakers was introduced.



A physician who is the director of a neuroimaging research center indicated

that the warning always issued previously  regarding those with heart

pacemakers staying at a considerable distance from MRI units is "outdated".

He said that the "newer" heart pacemakers can take the full hit of a 1.5

Tesla MRI field and keep on ticking. Thus, persons with the "newer"

pacemakers should be permitted to have medical MRI exams and to participate

in MRI research studies. [How a person would know if his/her pacemaker is

one of the MRI-safe ones -- if in fact such a thing exists -- is beyond

me!]



This was a big surprise to me. I have always believed that MRIs are

absolutely contraindicated for those with any  type of heart pacemaker or

any ferromagnetic structure in their bodies, for that matter. In fact, my

understanding was that persons with pacemakers could not be exposed to

magnetic fields much above 5 Gauss without the risk of incurring possible

problems with their pacemakers. 15,000 Gauss exposures (1.5 Tesla) would be

completely out of the question.



Does anybody know anything concerning this matter? Are there indeed

MRI-safe pacemakers?



Rick Mannix

Health Physicist

Laser Safety Officer

University of California

EH&S Office

4600 Bison Ave.

Irvine, CA 92697-2725



949-824-6098

949-824-8539   fax

rcmannix@uci.edu

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