Heart Beat: Is there an afterlife for pacemakers and defibrillators?
Heart Beat
The old adage "You can't take it with you" doesn't apply to a growing number of people with heart rhythm problems who are accompanied into the great beyond by a still-ticking pacemaker or fully functional implantable cardioverter/defibrillator (ICD). A device buried with its owner or removed before cremation and discarded as medical waste represents a lost opportunity. If returned to the company that made it, researchers could see how it functioned — or failed. If sent to a small nonprofit organization that recycles working pacemakers and ICDs, it can be used elsewhere in the world for people unable to afford these lifesaving devices.
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