hi, I had an implanted SCID (defib) last week. I was given a large booklet of precautions from the manufacturer which is good. As I’m recovering I thought I’d have plenty of time to play my home based pipe organ, however it’s full of electromagnets and I even sit on top of the electrical fan blower and motor box which is under my seat.
does anyone else here have any experience of having a pacemaker/scid fitted and knows if it is safe to continue to play an electric pipe organ without it affecting the performance/settings of their device!?
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Northandwest
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Hi Northandwest and a big welcome to the forum. That's a really interesting question, it would never have occurred to me that the electromagnets in your pipe organ might have a detrimental effect on your SCID - you're definitely doing the right thing to check. As it was my 'plumbing' that went wrong last year rather than my 'electrics' 😀, resulting in a 3xCABG, I'm afraid I can't help but hopefully someone will be along soon to provide some advice. I wonder if the team who fitted your SCID might be able to advise you? I've played piano most of my life and I know it really helped with my recovery after the bypass op, so fingers crossed that you get a positive answer that will allow you to continue to play. I'm sure other members will be really interested to know the outcome too. Every best wish for a successful and fast recovery. Carol
Thank you - I trawled the internet for a similar query. Strangely, the precautions booklet warns me about jackhammers and hydroelectric dam tours but only electric guitars are mentioned in the hobbies section!
I have an ICD (a transvenous one) and have to be aware of magnets too. Welcome to the club! I'm also a physics graduate and former physics teacher, so I know a thing or two about magnetic fields. I have done quite a bit of research about the effect of magnets on the device (more out of curiosity than anything).
As I understand it from manufacturer information, (see wwwp.medtronic.com/crs-uplo... for an example), the effect of a magnet being too close to the ICD or S-ICD is to disable it from sensing and responding to arrhythmia. There will be a magnetic field strength threshold; i.e. not all magnetic fields will cause an issue or the Earth's natural magnetic field would cause us absolute chaos!
(N.B. The effect on a pacemaker is different - it will normally switch it to a pacing mode.)
Disabling an ICD/S-ICD is not an ideal situation, of course, but the good news is that as soon as the magnetic field is reduced by moving the magnet away, the device resumes normal operation. So a momentary pass by a nearby magnet should pose no issue.
Fun fact: If you have an MRI scan, they use a magnet to disable the device.
Two factors affect the strength of a magnetic field that you'll experience: 1) Strength of field source and 2) Distance from the field source. Sleeping near to a desktop fan on the bedside table or holding a mobile phone against your right ear aren't going to cause you an issue. Low power fans use very small and fairly weak magnets. Mobile phones have strong magnets in them, much more powerful than the electromagnetic actuators in an organ, although I appreciate that an instrument with many stops will have lots of actuators.
Here's the crucial bit: If you can be sure to follow the same guidelines on distances for your mobile phone to the nearest organ electromagnet, then you should be absolutely fine. Do you know roughly where they are located?
And the blower? Well, assuming the motor is near the bottom of the blower, then sitting on it should be fine. Lying, chest down on it or hugging it (or the organ) may be another issue.
I hope you enjoy some music therapy. 🙂 May I request some Lefébure-Wély or Franck? 😃
Thank you, that’s a reassuring reply. I was having fears that I wouldn't be able to play it anymore - it’s quite a love of mine. As my pipe organ is an electric console filled with electric contacts, I thought I’d need to replace to a full manual tracker organ avoiding the electronics. I’m going to switch on tomorrow as the magnets are weak and further away than my phone, I might get someone to move the blower motor anyway as it’s quite hefty and it’s attached via a flexible hose. I don’t know where I’d be without music and at this time of year it’s preparing pieces for Christmas! Thank you
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