RFIDs may pose hospital risk

CHICAGO , June 25 (UPI) -- Dutch researchers say radio frequency identification devices may cause critical-care medical equipment to fail.

The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, looked at the effect the devices have on pacemakers, ventilators and other equipment, USA Today said Wednesday.

Radio frequency identification devices, which are commonly used in hospitals on items ranging from security cards to surgical sponges, caused interference with medical devices in 34 of 123 tests, the newspaper said.

Dr. Erik Jan van Lieshout of the Academic Medical Centre of the University of Amsterdam said medical equipment makers need to create protective technologies to keep the devices from interfering with their products. Donald Berwick, president and chief executive officer of the Institute for Healthcare Improvement in Cambridge, Mass., said more research is needed to determine the true risk of RFIDs in hospital settings.