The U.S. FDA reported Sept. 17 that the Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc. CPT hip system is associated with an increased risk of thighbone fracture, a problem Zimmer acknowledged with a July 2, 2024, class II recall.

The Nov. 20-21 meeting of the digital health advisory committee will discuss the use of generative artificial intelligence algorithms in medical devices with a focus on the total product life cycle – a theme that suggests a concern on the agency’s part regarding the reliability of these algorithms’ output.

Hiiti Sillo, director of the WHO’s office for regulation and safety, told an audience at this year’s IMDRF meeting in Seattle that WHO is putting the finishing touches on a streamlined product application dossier process, one of several work products that should be ready for publication sometime in 2025.

The U.S. FDA approved Apple Inc.’s Airpods Pro 2 as an over-the-counter assistive hearing device for adults with mild-to-moderate hearing loss, making the ubiquitous devices the first assistive hearing technology to receive this designation.

The U.S. FDA issued warning letters to a pair of non-clinical testing labs located in China for violations of good laboratory practices, but the fall-out may reach existing marketing authorizations.

The FDA’s Sept. 5, 2024, draft guidance for the use of patient preference information (PPI) over the total product life cycle represents a new set of requirements for device makers when obtaining such information. Going forward, device makers may be required to provide more detail about patient heterogeneity, including when the benefit-risk calculation varies by subpopulation.

The U.S. FDA posted a series of de novo decisions Sept. 9, including a digital diagnostic for chronic kidney disease progression by Renalytix AI Inc., of New York, and a digital therapy device for management of fibromyalgia symptoms by Swing Therapeutics Inc., of San Francisco.

The U.S. FDA’s final guidance for device remanufacturing was the result of a nearly decade-long policy examination, and the agency’s Sept. 10 webinar highlighted a few key questions. The FDA’s Angela Krueger said the agency “always encourages transparency” on the part of manufacturers to ensure device safety and performance but said the FDA does not endorse disclosure of trade secrets in providing information on device servicing.

Femasys Inc. checked off a box on the way to launch of its Fembloc non-surgical birth control method with U.S. FDA clearance of Femchec. An enhanced version of the Femvue product used to diagnose fallopian tube abnormalities, Femchec enables confirmation of successful blockage of the fallopian tubes to prevent pregnancy without use of radiation.

The FDA reported several class I recalls in the first week of September 2024, a list that includes products such as Medtronic plc’s McGrath line of laryngoscopes, some of which should be jettisoned.