PACEMAKER/CELLULAR PHONE EMI BENCH TESTING PROTOCOL WILL BE DEVELOPED
This article was originally published in The Gray Sheet
Executive Summary
PACEMAKER/CELLULAR PHONE EMI BENCH TESTING PROTOCOL WILL BE DEVELOPED over the next several months by pacemaker manufacturers and the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association (CTIA), Medtronic VP Chuck Swanson said at an Oct. 5 heating of the House Government Operations/Information, Justice, Transportation, and Agriculture Subcommittee. Testifying on behalf of the Health Industry Manufacturers Association and the pacemaker industry, Swanson reported that pacer manufacturers and CTIA "have agreed to work...to develop the best protocol" for bench testing "to evaluate the effects of cellular phones on pacemaker operations." Swanson noted that FDA will review and comment on the protocol once it is developed. Representatives of the medical community, primarily cardiologists, may also participate in protocol development, he said.