title: [Magnets, pacemaker and defibrillator: fatal attraction?].
abstract: This article aims at clarifying the effects of a clinical magnet on pacemakers and Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators. The effects of electromagnetic interferences on such devices, including interferences linked to electrosurgery and magnetic resonance imaging are also discussed. In general, a magnet provokes a distinctive effect on a pacemaker by converting it into an asynchronous mode of pacing, and on an Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator by suspending its own antitachyarythmia therapies without affecting the pacing. In the operating room, the magnet has to be used cautiously with precisely defined protocols which respect the type of the device used, the type of intervention planned, the presence or absence of EMI and the pacing-dependency of the patient.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bergamin
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Graf
mesh_terms: D017147:Defibrillators, Implantable / Q000009:adverse effects; D004574:Electromagnetic Fields / Q000009:adverse effects*; D004868:Equipment Failure; D006761:Hospitals; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000009:adverse effects; D059346:Magnets / Q000009:adverse effects*; D009873:Operating Rooms; D010138:Pacemaker, Artificial / Q000009:adverse effects; D012307:Risk Factors; D012308:Risk Management