RE: Atomic Pacemakers

[Chris Alston <alstonc@odrge.odr.georgetown.edu>]

The T1/2 is 88y.
chris a.

At 02:37 PM 5/26/99 -0500, you wrote:
>	on Wednesday, May 26, 1999 3:14 PM, you wrote,
>
>>  There are approximately 70 being worn by patients in the U.S.  The two   
>> principal manufacturers of these pacemakers were  Cordis and Medtronic   
>> (Coratomic).  They are no longer involved with the monitoring.  Other   
>> companies have assumed that function.
>> Each pacemaker contains 175 mg plutonium-238 about 2.8 curies). 
><><><><><><><><><><>
>
>Surprised to see there are so few left now !
>Question: were similar devices ever used/made in other countries -- France,
>U.K., Germany, Canada, Belgium, Japan, etc. ?
>
>Question 2: there seems to be some inconsistency in the Pu content figures;
>for instance, the following is posted at URL
>http://www.nrc.gov/OPA/pn/pn19858.htm
>
>Subject: LOSS OF A NUCLEAR-POWERED CARDIAC PACEMAKER 
>At approximately 5:00 p.m. on November 30, 1998, the Radiation Safety
>Officer (RSO) of Washington Hospital Center informed Region I that there was
>a potential loss of a nuclear-powered cardiac pacemaker, containing 250
>milligrams of plutonium-238, which equates to approximately 4.27 curies. The
>pacemaker had been explanted from an expired patient at a funeral home on
>August 26, 1998 and returned to Washington Hospital Center, the pacemaker
>licensee, for disposal by Washington Hospital Center. The RSO stated that
>the pacemaker had been mailed to St. Jude Medical, Inc. of Sylmar,
>California on September 15, 1998 via U.S. Postal Service.St. Jude Medical,
>Inc. was supposed to receive the pacemaker on behalf ofthe pacemaker vendor.
>On or about October 22, 1998, the licensee called St. Jude Medical for
>confirmation of receipt of the pacemaker. However, St. Jude Medical
>indicated that it had not received the pacemaker. In its search for the
>missing pacemaker, surveys were conducted of various areas of the Washington
>Hospital Center facility, including the Postal Area. Washington Hospital
>Center has requested that St. Jude Medical, Inc. conduct an extensive
>search, including radiological surveys, of its various facilities in its
>continued attempts to locate the missing pacemaker. Region I will continue
>to follow up on the incident and is planning an on-site inspection. The
>District of Columbia has been informed. The Region I Office of Public
>Affairs is prepared to respond to media inquiries. The information is
>current as of 2:00 p.m., December 1, 1998. 
>
>Any insights on these additional questions ?
>
>Thanks to everyone for their generous replies.
>
>jaro
>frantaj@aecl.ca
>************************************************************************
>The RADSAFE Frequently Asked Questions list, archives and subscription
>information can be accessed at http://www.ehs.uiuc.edu/~rad/radsafe.html
>

************************************************************************
The RADSAFE Frequently Asked Questions list, archives and subscription
information can be accessed at http://www.ehs.uiuc.edu/~rad/radsafe.html