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Safety Guidelines
children was strictly precautionary; it was not
based on scientific evidence that any health hazard
exists.
11. What about wireless phone interference with
medical equipment?
Radio frequency energy (RF) from wireless phones
can interact with some electronic devices. For this
reason, the FDA helped develop a detailed test
method to measure electromagnetic interference
(EMI) of implanted cardiac pacemakers and
defibrillators from wireless telephones. This test
method is now part of a standard sponsored by the
Association for the Advancement of Medical
instrumentation (AAMI). The final draft, a joint effort
by the FDA, medical device manufacturers, and many
other groups, was completed in late 2000. This
standard will allow manufacturers to ensure that
cardiac pacemakers and defibrillators are safe from
wireless phone EMI. The FDA has tested hearing aids
for interference from handheld wireless phones and
helped develop a voluntary standard sponsored by
the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers
(IEEE). This standard specifies test methods and
performance requirements for hearing aids and
wireless phones so that no interference occurs when
a person uses a ‘compatible’ phone and a
‘compatible’ hearing aid at the same time. This
standard was approved by the IEEE in 2000. The FDA
continues to monitor the use of wireless phones for
possible interactions with other medical devices.
Should harmful interference be found to occur, the
FDA will conduct testing to assess the interference
and work to resolve the problem.
12. Where can I find additional information?
For additional information, please refer to the
following resources:
FDA web page on wireless phones
(http://www.fda.gov/cdrh/phones/index.html)
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) RF
Safety Program
(http://www.fcc.gov/oet/rfsafety)
International Commission on Non-lonizing Radiation
Protection
(http://www.icnirp.de)
World Health Organization (WHO) International EMF
Project
(http://www.who.int/emf)