Henry Ford doctors say iPhone 12 can disrupt defibrillators, pacemakers

DETROIT – Cardiologists at the Henry Ford Heart and Vascular Institute said that the magnet in the iPhone 12 can disrupt the function of a defibrillator.

Their findings are backed by a warning from Apple that tells people with implanted pacemakers and defibrillators to keep their devices more than 6 inches apart.

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According to Henry Ford, there are more than 300,000 recipients of implanted defibrillators and pacemakers every year.

Doctors said they were alarmed by their discovery. Henry Ford cardiologists, led by Gurjit Singh, M.D., released a manuscript about their findings and submitted it to the medical journal HeartRhythm. It was published on Jan. 4.

Apple published a warning on its webpage on January 23. Doctors said the findings also got the attention of the FDA. Click here to read the warning from Apple.

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