Electromagnetic Interference Immunity Testing of Medical Equipment to Second- and Third-Generation Mobile Phones

There has been concern regarding the effect of electromagnetic interference (EMI) on medical equipment from portable wireless communication devices in hospitals in Hong Kong. The latest third-generation (3G) mobile communication system was fully implemented in 2004. As a result, an investigation to examine the EMI issues surrounding medical equipment, due to interference from communication devices, including GSM900, PCS1800, and 3G digital mobile phones, has been carried out. A statistical analysis has shown that the cumulative distribution function of base station signals within the hospital's environment follows the Weibull distribution for all three mobile phone systems in Hong Kong and that the percentage of failed medical equipment increases with a correlation of an increase in the radiated power level of the mobile phone. This is a direct result of a weakening in base station signals. The EMI effect from 3G mobile phones is also found to be four to eight times lower than that of the GSM900 and PCS1800, in locations inside the hospitals with weak base station signal strength, such as a basement or in operation theaters.

[1]  R Tobisch,et al.  Mobile phones in hospitals. , 1999, Biomedical instrumentation & technology.

[2]  C.R. Birtcher,et al.  Shielding effectiveness and statistical analysis of cylindrical scale fuselage model , 2005, IEEE Transactions on Electromagnetic Compatibility.

[3]  A. Trigano,et al.  Electromagnetic Interference of External Pacemakers by Walkie‐Talkies and Digital Cellular Phones: Experimental Study , 1999, Pacing and clinical electrophysiology : PACE.

[4]  M Hietanen,et al.  Safe use of mobile phones in hospitals. , 2000, Health physics.

[5]  Zheng Jian.  Discussion of IEC 60601-1-4:2000 Medical Electrical Equipment-Part 1-4:General Requirements for Safety-Collateral Standard:Programmable Electrical Medical Systems , 2007 .

[6]  Quentin L. Burrell,et al.  Handbook of Exponential and Related Distributions for Engineers and Scientists , 2008 .

[7]  Aura Ganz,et al.  A mobile teletrauma system using 3G networks , 2004, IEEE Transactions on Information Technology in Biomedicine.

[8]  Julián Fernández-Navajas,et al.  Performance of a 3g-based mobile telemedicine system , 2006, CCNC 2006. 2006 3rd IEEE Consumer Communications and Networking Conference, 2006..

[9]  M P Robinson,et al.  Interference to medical equipment from mobile phones. , 1997, Journal of medical engineering & technology.

[10]  G. Calcagnini,et al.  Electromagnetic Interference To Infusion Pumps From GSM Mobile Phones , 2004, The 26th Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society.

[11]  Konstantinos Perakis,et al.  Use of 3G mobile phone links for teleconsultation between a moving ambulance and a hospital base station , 2006, Journal of telemedicine and telecare.

[12]  Kok-Swang Tan,et al.  Radiofrequency susceptibility tests on medical equipment , 1994, Proceedings of 16th Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society.