Should pacemaker patients keep a safe distance from the new iPhones?

The magnets on the back of the iPhone 12 generate a magnetic field around the case. — dpa

Apple recommends to keep a minimum distance of 15 centimetres between the iPhone 12 and 13 models and implanted medical devices. According to German cardiologists, it doesn’t have to be that much. What does this mean for patients?

Magnetic fields of a certain strength can interfere with pacemakers and defibrillators. Anyone who has an implanted medical device should therefore not carry a smartphone directly above their chest – in their shirt pocket, for example.