The U.S. FDA and Department of Justice have announced a consent decree entered into district court that enjoins Philips Respironics LLC North America from manufacturing and distributing respiratory devices from three company facilities in the state of Pennsylvania.
The U.S. FDA announced a class I recall of single-use neurovascular guide catheters made by Medos International Sarl SA of Neuchatel, Switzerland, because of fractures in the device’s distal catheter shaft. The FDA stated that the issue, seen in the company’s Cerebase DA line of guide sheaths, has led Medos to recommend that customers quarantine any of the affected devices, although a root cause has not yet been identified.
The U.S. FDA has followed up on reports of problematic syringes made by several companies in mainland China, recommending that U.S. suppliers, consumers and health care organizations stop using these products unless no alternatives are available. The agency said it has issued warning letters to three of these companies, at least one of which appears to have been the supplier of Monoject syringes that have been the subjects of recent FDA recalls.
The U.S. FDA announced March 7 that Cardinal Health of Dublin, Ohio, has expanded a product correction for Monoject devices to a product removal because of manufacturing changes that could affect product performance.
The U.S. FDA reported Feb. 29 that data on the Hintermann series H3 total ankle system suggest a significantly higher rate of device failure than seen in premarket clinical studies, a problem that has arisen even though only five years have passed since the agency approved the device.
The U.S. FDA reported Feb. 15 that Philips USA, a subsidiary of Amsterdam-based Royal Philips NV, recalled three models of the Brightview line of single photon emission CT (SPECT) systems due to an incident in which the system detector fell.
The U.S. FDA has announced a class I recall of Iveninx large-volume infusion pumps made by Fresenius Kabi USA of Lake Zurich, Ill., due to a mechanical issue with fluid valve pins that could cause the pumps to shut down. Fresenius is rolling out a remediation plan for more than 900 pumps affected by the recall, which to date has been associated with no reports of injury or death.
Industry may still be less than fond of the failure of the term “recall” to distinguish between corrections and market withdrawals, but the class I recall of the Insulet Omnipod 5 app for Android smartphones is a correction of some importance. This recall, one of the first to be announced by the FDA in 2024, addresses a software problem that could lead to overdose of insulin, a potentially lethal problem for which the company has already provided a fix.
More bad news on the recall front for Royal Philips NV, as the U.S. FDA this week categorized the company’s voluntary recall of its Panorama 1.0T HFO open magnetic resonance (MR) system as a class I action. Class I recalls indicate the “use of the devices may cause serious injuries or death,” the FDA noted.
Philips Respironics Inc.’s nightmares with its Dreamstation continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) line of products continued with a fresh warning from the U.S. FDA of reports involving thermal issues with a newer iteration of the machine, some of which cited patient injuries.