Smart Coveris an accessory for tablets iPad which allows protecting the screen, locking/unlocking the tablet by covering the screen and using it as a stand for the tablet. The Smart Cover is an extremely popular accessory, but unfortunately it can prove to be a silent killer in the case of people who have implanted pacemakers. A 14-year-old student discovered this while working on a scientific project, the magnets inside the Smart Cover deactivating defibrillators if the tablet is placed directly above the area where they were implanted.
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."
Peace roomthey can be blocked by the magnets, as a safety element, and the proximity of the Smart Cover magnets to the chest can generate a temporary suspension of the defibrillators. The student did a study and noticed that 30% of people who have an implanted pacemaker are affected by the problem, the number being extremely high. Unfortunately, the same thing can happen if any kind of strong magnet is placed in the same area of the heart of a pacemaker owner, so the fault is not Apple's only to the extent that it did not warn its customers about this danger.
Although most pacemakers reactivate themselves after removing the Smart Cover, unfortunately some require a manual restart, so the person in question may die without knowing that the defibrillator is not working. In conclusion, if you have an implanted pacemaker, it would be better not to hold the Smart Cover close to your heart.
