Medical alert systems for seniors can literally be a lifesaver in the event of a medical or other kind of emergency. But just like any product, they are not perfect. There are some issues you should know about.

There could be issues with the medical pendants you would wear around your neck or wrist. A study from the Food and Drug Administration reports rare cases of people getting strangled by their necklaces. Some companies offer breakaway lanyards in case they get tangled around the neck. However, other providers refuse to give them, saying they could fall off in the event of a fall, leaving the senior without access to their button.

Another potential problem with the pendants is that if a senior suffers a stroke, he or she may not be physically able to press the button, rendering the system useless.

Many medical alert systems for seniors use cellular technology. But if you have an older system or want to pay less per month, then you are stuck using a traditional phone line. You should know that if you or someone else is on the phone and you have to use the system, your call to the monitoring center will not go through. You need to install a device called a line seizure that allows you to take over the phone line with your call.

If you have automatic fall detection, be advised that some false alarms are received as falls and a call will be placed to the monitoring center. In these cases, just tell the monitor you did not fall and you can both go about your days.

It is important to know about the limitations of medical alert systems for seniors, but overall the advantages far outweigh these potential problems. It might be worth putting up with a little bit of hassle in exchange for knowing that help is just the press of a button away when you really need it.