Metal detector security screening appears safe for people with pacemakers or implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs), according to a new study.

Researchers at the German Heart Center (Munich, Germany) conducted a cross-sectional study to assess changes in function of pacemakers and ICDs after exposure to hand-held metal detectors in 388 patients (209 with pacemakers and 179 with ICDs) presenting for routine follow-up of device function between September 2009 and December 2010. The researchers measured abnormalities on electrocardiography (ECG) readings suggestive of rhythm device malfunction (pacing inhibition, loss of capture, inappropriate mode switch, ventricular over-sensing, and spontaneous reprogramming) after 30 seconds of exposure to hand-held metal detectors, with a maximal electromagnetic flux density of 6.3 µT.

The results showed that the simulation of airport screening had no affect on the function of pacemakers or ICDs, nor were there any ECG abnormalities. Even prolonged swipes with hand-held metal detectors resulted in no device malfunctions, as determined by interrogation of the rhythm devices for abnormalities, and no pacing or sensing problems or device reprogramming was detected either during or after metal detector exposure. Metal detector gates--which generate much stronger electromagnetic fields--also appeared safe for cardiac rhythm device patients, as shown in a prior study by the same research group. The study was published in the November 1, 2011, issue of Annals of Internal Medicine.

“The use of hand-held metal detectors for security screening is probably safe for patients with pacemakers and ICDs,” concluded lead author Clemens Jilek, MD, and colleagues. “Nevertheless, our negative findings cannot be considered definitive because the study used a convenience sample of patients and devices; the number of each model device tested was small and often consisted of a single device in a single patient.”

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has reported 44 cases in which hand-held metal detectors or antitheft devices had possibly interfered with cardiac rhythm devices from 1988 to 1998. Due to concerns over possible interference, the US Transportation Security Administration (TSA; Vienna, VA, USA) has recommended that travelers at airports preferably request a pat-down if they have a pacemaker or ICD.

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