the numerous anecdotal reports of catastrophic medical equipment failure in close proximity to electromagnetic field emitters ( such as mobile phones or other wireless devices ) have recently been supported by formal studies . add to this growing literature database by reporting the effects of electromagnetic interference ( emi ) produced by newer generation mobile phone signals on medical devices commonly used in an intensive care unit ( icu ) . based on a high ( 43% ) rate of emi - related incidents at a median distance of 3 cm , they reasonably conclude that mobile phone use in critical care units should be restricted to the usual 1 m distance from the critical care bedside . these investigators used a worst case scenario in their study design , simulating electromagnetic ( em ) fields at the maximum signal strength generated by mobile phones and intentionally targeting poorly shielded locations on the tested medical devices . the high rate of hazardous incidents that they found may not represent what would be expected from routine mobile phone use . other studies reporting on the susceptibility of commercial medical devices to emi in real life ( as opposed to laboratory ) environments using reasonable distance restrictions have found fewer clinically relevant emi events [ 3 - 5 ] . although van leishout 's data can be interpreted as supportive of the use of mobile phones 94% of hazardous events occurred at a distance of 30 cm or less  the danger of relying on a 1 m restriction is highlighted . the catastrophic failure of a ventilator at a distance of 3 m from a mobile phone signal raises serious concerns about industrial standards , as the authors note in their conclusions . industrial standards for life - supporting medical devices ( international electrotechnical commission [ iec ] standard 60060 - 1 - 2 ) fall substantially short of achievable standards  for example , for military equipment ( mil - std-461 ) . almost a decade ago , the institute of electrical and electronics engineers ( ieee ) committee on man and radiation noted that technology existed to protect most medical devices from radiofrequency fields much more intense than the iec standards , and that shielding , grounding and filtering , were not costly when incorporated into the initial device design . despite that , and in the face of growing evidence of emi in the literature , there have been no substantial changes to emi susceptibility standards for medical devices in the last decade . newer generation wireless devices are rapidly expanding into frequency spectrums not covered by current standards for medical devices , necessitating more frequent reevaluation of those standards . hospitals rely on manufacturers ' stipulated adherence to emi standards , typically based on third - party susceptibility testing of a small number of sample devices . electromagnetic susceptibility of an individual medical device may vary due to poor quality control during construction . compliance with standards can not be guaranteed , which may explain why some devices fall below the food and drug administration ( fda ) standard when tested in hospital environments . regardless of the potential risks , wireless technology is becoming increasingly prevalent in the critical care environment . hospitals are routinely using wireless solutions for patient monitoring , data collection , and enhanced communication . several companies are now offering wireless solutions for electronic - icu applications , using either their own proprietary networks , or ' piggybacking ' on existing hospital networks . a new generation of transport monitors and external defibrillators offers wireless transmission to hospital telemetry systems . current data suggest that wireless area networks ( 802.11 ) and bluetooth systems do not carry a risk of emi with medical devices . however , the rapid development of new wireless telecommunication technologies makes much of the current literature obsolete . with each new generation of wireless technology , information technologists and medical engineers must determine the impact on existing hospital network infrastructure and medical devices . there are those that argue that the intangible benefits of improved communication using wireless devices far outweigh the small risk of a hazardous event from emi . as wireless devices become less expensive and consequently more prevalent we are also seeing increasing use of data transmission ( email , web access ) in addition to voice communication , by staff and visitors . increased awareness of the risks of emi , by staff , patients and visitors , is essential to ensure sensible use of wireless devices . there are other aspects of electromagnetic interference that may need to be considered , such as bandwidth competition by medical devices employing the same local wireless networks , or between medical devices and personal wireless products . as restrictions on the use of wireless technology are relaxed , increased vigilance and testing of new wireless devices and their transmission networks is essential , in our own hospital environments with our own equipment . emi = electromagnetic interference ; em = electromagnetic ; fda = food and drug administration ; icu = intensive care unit ; iec = international electrotechnical commission ; ieee = institute of electrical and electronics engineers .