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Airport Security: Safe for Implanted
Cardiac Devices?

People with implanted cardiac devices pass through airports every day. Whether you’re a frequent flier or an occasional traveler, you may have questions about your device and airport security. The key to dealing confidently with this part of your journey is knowing what to expect and how to prepare.

LifeBeat Online answers your questions about how to plan for a trouble-free trip through airport security.

Should I bring my Medical Device Identification card with me when traveling by air?

You should always have your Medical Device Identification (ID) card with you. The Medical Device ID card identifies you as a person with an implanted cardiac device (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Your Medical Device ID card identifies you as a person with an implanted cardiac device. The card ../includes your doctor’s phone number and other important information.

To order a Medical Device ID card, call Boston Scientific CRM (formerly Guidant) at 1-866-484-3268. If you have a Medical Device ID card with the Guidant name, rest assured that your card still has all the information you need, and the toll-free number on the Guidant card will still connect you to a patient services representative who can answer your questions.

Should I let airport security know that I have an implanted cardiac device?

Airport security does not require that you tell them about your implanted cardiac device, but it could be helpful to let them know. If you are traveling outside the country, a Medical Device Patient Travel card may be helpful.

Before you reach the security archway, show either your Medical Device ID card or your Patient Travel card to the security staff. The Patient Travel card explains in several languages that your cardiac device may set off airport security alarms (Figure 2). You can order the card in the languages you need by calling Boston Scientific at 1-866-484-3268.

Figure 2. The Patient Travel card explains in several languages that your cardiac device may set off airport security alarms. You can order the card in the languages you need. Show it to security staff before you enter the security archway.

After showing your card, just follow the security staff’s directions. Depending on the airport, the staff may do one of the following:

Tell you to continue through the security archway
Use a hand-held security wand
Do a hand-pat search

Is it safe to go through an airport security archway with an implanted cardiac device?

Yes. The security archway is a metal detector. Simply walk through it at a normal pace. The metal in your device may trigger the archway alarm, but the archway won’t hurt you or your device.

If you do hear an alarm as you pass through the archway, the sound is coming from the archway—not from your device. The security archway alarm sounds very different from the quieter beeping tone some cardiac devices make. Nothing in the archway can cause your device to beep.

What should I do if the security archway alarm goes off?

Tell the security staff that you have an implanted cardiac device. Then show them your Medical Device ID card or Patient Travel card. The staff may want to check you with a hand-held security wand or do a hand-pat search.

Will a hand-held security wand affect my cardiac device?

Like the security archway, a security wand is a metal detector. But the wand also has a built-in magnet. The magnet could affect your device, depending upon what type of device you have, how it is programmed, and how the wand is used.

For pacemakers, the magnet in a security wand may cause the device to temporarily pace differently than how it is programmed, but only during the time the wand is held over the pacemaker. The magnet can sometimes affect implantable cardioverter defibrillators (also called defibrillators or ICDs) and heart failure devices with built-in defibrillators.

The magnet could turn off a defibrillator, but only if the wand is held over the device for at least 30 seconds. If you have a defibrillator and the security staff uses a hand-held wand, tell them that you have an implanted device. Ask the staff to move the wand quickly rather than hold it over your device.

A wand passed quickly over a defibrillator will do no harm. If you think the wand was held over your device longer than 30 seconds, contact your doctor immediately. Your doctor will tell you whether it is safe to board the plane.

What should I do if my device beeps when I am being checked with the hand-held wand?

A hand-held security wand contains a magnet. If your doctor programmed your device to beep around magnets, your device may beep when the security wand is passed over it. (Only defibrillation devices can beep. Pacemakers do not beep or make any sounds at all.) Contact your doctor if you think the wand was held over your device longer than 30 seconds. Your doctor will tell you whether it is safe to board the plane.

Hear A Defibrillator Beep

A defibrillator may make a beeping sound when the airport security staff checks it with a hand-held security wand.
When the wand moves away the beeping sound stops.
A security wand passed quickly over a device will not harm the device.

If you have other specific questions about devices and airport security, you can call Boston Scientific at 1-866-484-3268.

Learn More

Travel with Your Device — A resource to help you find facilities around the world that treat individuals with Boston Scientific devices.

Sources of Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) — Guidelines to help you identify types of equipment and tools that are safe to use near cardiac devices, as well as the types to avoid.