Table of Contents
Advertisement
Health and safety information
of the phone. The phone may be forced to boost its
power to compensate, leading to an increase in RF
absorption. In February 2002, the Federal trade
Commission (FTC) charged two companies that sold
devices that claimed to protect wireless phone users
from radiation with making false and unsubstantiated
claims. According to FTC, these defendants lacked a
reasonable basis to substantiate their claim.
9. What about wireless phone interference with
medical equipment?
Radio frequency energy (RF) from wireless phones can
interact with some electronic devices. For this reason,
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 FDA, medical device manufacturers, and
many other groups, was completed in late 2000. This
standard will allow manufacturers to ensure that
110
cardiac pacemakers and defibrillators are safe from
wireless phone EMI.
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.
FDA continues to monitor the use of wireless phones
for possible interactions with other medical devices.
Should harmful interference be found to occur, FDA
will conduct testing to assess the interference and
work to resolve the problem.
10. What are the results of the research done already?
The research done thus far has produced conflicting
results, and many studies have suffered from flaws in
their research methods. Animal experiments
Advertisement
Table of Contents
