Beacon Biosignals Inc. can rest easy now that it has received U.S. FDA authorization of its predetermined change control plan for the Dreem 3s, a wearable sleep monitor that conducts electroencephalograms as users sleep. The authorization allows Beacon to incorporate updates to the Dreem 3S sleep-staging algorithm acquired through machine learning without submitting a new 510(k) application.

At long last, the U.S. FDA finalized guidance on using predetermined change control plans in submissions for medical devices that include artificial intelligence. The guidance, “Marketing Submission Recommendations for a Predetermined Change Control Plan for Artificial Intelligence-Enabled Device Software Functions,” aims to support the iterative improvement central to many algorithms while minimizing potential issues with safety and efficacy.

In breaking news, Wave Neuroscience LLC received breakthrough device designation from the U.S. FDA for its magnetic electroencephalogram resonance therapy for adjunctive treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), making its technology the first medical device approved to treat the debilitating condition, the company said.

Movano Inc., dba Movano Health, added some clinical-grade glitz to its Evie ring with a U.S. FDA clearance for the built-in pulse oximeter. Movan’s stock shot up from an all-time low within minutes of the announcement on Dec. 2, as the clearance breathes new life into Movano’s plans to position the ring as a medical device.

Nine out of 10 people with chronic kidney disease have no idea their kidneys are impaired, largely because of a lack of routine testing for albuminuria, one of the earliest biomarker for the disease.

Medtronic plc and Tempus AI Inc. launched the ALERT study to better understand and address the racial, ethnic, gender and geographic disparities associated with guideline-recommended treatments for aortic stenosis and mitral valve regurgitation. Currently, white patients represent 91% of people who receive TAVR procedures, a minimally invasive procedure that sharply reduces complications and improves quality of life in patients with narrowed heart valves.

While women with “big hearts” play well in popular culture, cardiologists see a very different picture – with significant implications for women’s health and medical care. Women have smaller hearts and narrower blood vessels than men and their cardiovascular systems respond to disease and treatment in very different ways. Growing evidence that failure to reflect women’s distinct anatomy in cardiac care leads to deadly disparities in outcomes has recently stimulated development of new diagnostics and increased focus on inclusion of women in medical device trials.

Three years after the U.S. FDA approval of Abbott Laboratories’ Amplatzer Amulet, results of its investigational device exemption trial failed to notably differentiate Abbott’s left atrial appendage occluder system from Boston Scientific Corp.’s market-dominant Watchman device beyond the ability to forego anticoagulants quickly after implantation.

Boston Scientific Corp.’s OPTION study demonstrated left atrial appendage closure with the Watchman Flx device reduced risk of stroke compared to management with direct oral anticoagulants or warfarin in patients with atrial fibrillation following cardiac ablation. Results were presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2024 and simultaneously published in The New England Journal of Medicine.

Johnson & Johnson received U.S. FDA investigational device exemption to begin the pivotal clinical trial for the Ottava robotic surgical system. If the trial goes well, Ottava could pose a significant challenge to decades-long dominance of the robotic surgical market by Intuitive Surgical Inc.’s Da Vinci system.