Abandoned Intravascular Pacer and ICD Leads

Safety:  Unsafe

Risks:  Thermal

Conditions:  None

Comments:

• No pulse generator attached, ONLY abandoned intravascular leads. Abandoned intravascular pacer and ICD leads, even if from MRI conditional pacing systems, are MRI unsafe.
• Intravascular lead fragments which do not have an intracardiac or proximal great vessel component are permissible, such as axillary vein fragments retained following cardiac transplant.

See Also:

• Epicardial leads
• Surface electrodes
• Temporary leads

Bottom line: Do NOT perform MRI. Exception for retained intravascular leads without an intracardiac component.