14-Year-Old Discovers iPad Smart Cover Magnets Can Shut Off Implanted Defibrillators

Skitched 20130509 162226A fourteen-year-old has discovered that the tiny magnets inside the iPad can inadvertently shut off implanted defibrillators if the device is left on the chest, such as might happen if the user falls asleep with the iPad lying on them.

Apple builds magnets into every iPad it sells for use with its Smart Cover accessory.

Gianna Chien made the discovery as part of a science fair project that didn't win first place, but she will be presenting her findings to 8,000 doctors at a meeting of the Heart Rhythm Society in Denver, reports Bloomberg.

The research offers a valuable warning for people with implanted defibrillators, which deliver an electric shock to restart a stopped heart, said John Day, head of heart-rhythm services at Intermountain Medical Center in Murray, Utah, and chairman of the panel that reviews scientific papers to be presented at the Denver meeting.

If a person falls asleep with the iPad2 on the chest, the magnets in the cover can “accidentally turn off” the heart device, said Chien, a high school freshman in Stockton, California, whose father is a doctor. “I definitely think people should be aware. That’s why I’m presenting the study.”

As a safety measure, implanted defibrillators can be turned off by magnets. The magnets in the iPad are too small to affect implanted defibrillators in normal use but can affect them if held close enough to the chest.

Chien's study found that 30 percent of patients with defibrillators who put iPads on their chest were affected by the device. Most defibrillators will turn back on once the magnet is removed, but some must be reactivated manually causing a potentially life-threatening situation.

Top Rated Comments

d4rkc4sm Avatar
132 months ago
this is very disheartening news
Score: 126 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Ray J Avatar
132 months ago
So how did this 14-year old "discover" this if it's written in Apple's safety documentation?
Score: 86 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bungiefan89 Avatar
132 months ago
this is very disheartening news
Score: 49 Votes (Like | Disagree)
pcguru83 Avatar
132 months ago
So Samsung is hiring highschool freshmen now? :p
Score: 39 Votes (Like | Disagree)
iChrist Avatar
132 months ago
hello?

.

This is obvious. All people with pacemakers are told to be careful around magnetic objects.

In other news, 14 year old discovers that epileptics may be affected by camera flash on iPhone.

.
Score: 30 Votes (Like | Disagree)
btbeme Avatar
132 months ago
My heart stopped the first time I saw an iPad in person.
Score: 27 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

gradiente iphone white

Brazilian Electronics Company Revives Long-Running iPhone Trademark Dispute

Tuesday May 19, 2020 1:06 pm PDT by
Apple has been involved in a long-running iPhone trademark dispute in Brazil, which was revived today by IGB Electronica, a Brazilian consumer electronics company that originally registered the "iPhone" name in 2000. IGB Electronica fought a multi-year battle with Apple in an attempt to get exclusive rights to the "iPhone" trademark, but ultimately lost, and now the case has been brought to...