And if it doesn't then collapsing to the ground holding his chest when the wand reaches there might make them understand.

BUT are pacemarkers cleared for use on aircraft?

1 - There's been discussion about the scanner not having as much radiation as a CT Scanner. I cannot get a CT Scan, because I have a pacemaker. Am I therefore unable to go through these scanners? Are there magnets used in there? My Pacemaker CAN go thru the metal detector due to the manner in which ot is shielded. It does not set off the detector.

2 - If these scanners can see thru clothing, how come we have to take our shoes off?????

My DH is on his second pacemaker/defibrillator (third, effective 11/18). His electrocardiologist's advice is not to go through any type of scanning device. He won't even go into department stores anymore because of the theft detection devices at entrances/exits.

There are two types of scanners in place:

Rapid Scan which uses backscatter x-ray - http://www.rapiscansystems.com/sec1000.html

L3 ProVision Scanner which uses millimeter (radio) waves - http://www.sds.l-3com.com/products/mmwave.htm

AS for the shoes - TSA makes you take them off because they can (Note military are not require to take their shoes off unless the WTMD alarms).

Only military in uniform. Military flying in civilian attire still have to remove shoes.

1 - You should discuss this with your medical team and follow their advice.

2 - So you'll feel safer. Don't you feel safer?

~~ Irish

1. You CAN have a CT scan or other ionizing radiation with a pacemaker. It is MRI that you need to avoid. We scan and do xrays on patients with pacemakers all the time (I'm a radiologist). It is the magnetic interference of an MRI that can potentially disrupt the function of your pacemaker (or cause heating effects).
So that is not in itself a valid reason to opt out, though I am still not in favor of the extra radiation, no matter how small. It is not anywhere near the amount from a CT scan--I do believe that--but its relation to other things (cosmic radiation from flight, etc) I question, as do the experts at UCSF.

2. As for the shoes....no idea. We probably don't really need them off for anything. Why are the TSA workers patting down bare skin?

OOPS - Thanks for correcting me. I knew it was the MRI I couldn't do - have had lots of CAT scans. It drives the Orthopedists crazy - first thing they want to do is an MRI! :-) Ofcoure, it did result in shoulder surgery that may have been different if i could have had the MRI. But I digress - sorry.

Just don't know if these new machines have large magnets in them. If they do, then can't go in with a Pacemaker.
My wife usually wears a skirt when flying - she finds it more comfortable than pants. Maybe she needs to rethink that.

I came home from Heathrow just a few weeks ago - have had a pacemaker for a couple years. My experience is much like some of the other posters above. When you get close to the WTMD, just pat your chest, say pacemaker, and they bring you into a patdown area rather than making you go through the WTMD. No problem at all at Heathrow, and I've had so many patdowns now (probably 100+ in the past 2 years of flying) that I almost don't notice it any more. The only one that ever really got me agitated was when one odd TSA person wanted to do the patdown with the hand-held metal detector turned off, so that she wouldn't have to use her hands. I refused - how could I tell whether she would turn it on mid-screening? she got another screener. The only other odd one was this TSA person who had an aversion to touching velvet, even through gloves and told me she couldn't do my patdown! She finally realized it was OK when I told her my pants were suede, not velvet. Seems like not being able to bring yourself to do a patdown should disqualify you from being a TSA agent in a patdown area. In any event, pacemakers are pretty routine for the TSA - though now they may try to make you go through the new scanners instead of having a patdown. I still prefer the patdown to a virtual strip search. And like others, I always pull my pacemaker ID card out of my wallet and have it in hand along with my photo ID and boarding pass. I will flash it if I get any confused looks from the TSA, but I've never been required to present it for any sort of thorough check.

No worries on the MRI mixup.


And, since my area is imaging, not cardiology, I was reminded in the other pacemaker thread that you should not go through the WTMD because it has magnetic properties (not as strong as MRI), and apparently the HHMD is out, too. Would question the MMW, since that is more radio, or is it closer to microwave sort of emission? Backscatter would be ok since it is ionizing radiation, but the battery may show up and you'd get a pat-down anyway. Prob best to just have the pat-down, such that it is.

Good luck!