Study links iPod to pacemaker failure


According to a study presented by a 17-year-old high school student to a meeting of heart specialists, iPods can cause implantable pacemakers to malfunction. In one case, an iPod was said to have "caused" one of the cardiac devices to fail completely, reports Reuters.

The study tested the effect of the portable music devices on 100 patients--mean age 77--outfitted with pacemakers. Electrical interference was detected half of the time when the iPod was held just 2 inches from the patient's chest for 5 to 10 seconds.

In some cases, the iPods caused interference when held 18 inches from the chest. Interfering with the telemetry equipment caused the device to misread the heart's pacing.

The study did not examine any portable music devices other than iPods.

Editor's note: Get ready for "ideath," "death pod" and other ridiculous headlines to surely be followed by spurious lawsuits galore...

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