WiFi-enabled PDA doesn't affect pacemakers

[Alexander Turcic]

According to a recent study at the Mayo Clinic, WiFi-enabled PDAs appear not to affect pacemakers and other heart-assisting devices.

"When new devices are used near a patient with a life-sustaining implantable device, there is a potential of electromagnetic interference, and assessment of potential interactions is critical," said David Hayes, M.D., a Mayo Clinic physician and the lead researcher in the study, which was published in the recent issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings. No such interferences or potential interactions were found with the testing device, a HP Compaq iPAQ fitted with a Cisco Aironet WLAN card.