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Management of radiation oncology patients with implanted cardiac pacemakers: Report of AAPM Task Group No. 34
Author(s) -
Marbach J. R.,
Sontag M. R.,
Van Dyk J.,
Wolbarst A. B.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
medical physics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.473
H-Index - 180
eISSN - 2473-4209
pISSN - 0094-2405
DOI - 10.1118/1.597259
Subject(s) - radiation oncology , gray (unit) , medicine , radiation therapy , medical physicist , cardiac pacemaker , medical physics , radiation dose , task group , nuclear medicine , radiology , engineering , engineering management
Contemporary cardiac pacemakers can fail from radiation damage at doses as low as 10 gray and can exhibit functional changes at doses as low as 2 gray. A review and discussion of this potential problem is presented and a protocol is offered that suggests that radiation therapy patients with implanted pacemakers be planned so as to limit accumulated dose to the pacemaker to 2 gray. Although certain levels and types of electromagnetic interference can cause pacemaker malfunction, there is evidence that this is not a serious problem around most contemporary radiation therapy equipment.