Health care giant, Johnson & Johnson’s, LifeScan unit just issued a massive recall of nearly 2 million OneTouch® Verio® blood glucose meters.
The OneTouch® Verio® devices malfunction at very high blood glucose levels, explained WebMD. About 1.2 million OneTouch® Verio® IQ meters, which were sold worldwide, are involved in the recall, said LifeScan spokesman, David Detmars. Some 90,000 of those devices were sold in the United States.
Another 670,000 OneTouch® Verio® Pro meters, which were sold in Europe, and 4,900 OneTouch® Verio®Pro + meters, which are used in hospitals and clinics outside the United States, were also involved in the recall, WebMD said.
It seems, WebMD explained, that the various OneTouch® Verio® models malfunction in slightly different ways when blood glucose levels of 1024 mg/dL and higher are reached during a blood glucose test.
LifeScan advises U.S. patients who use the OneTouch® Verio® IQ meter to call 1.800.717.0276 to receive a free replacement device. Patients may continue to use their current OneTouch® Verio® meter in the interim, but are advised to bear in mind that the defect exists, said WebMD.
An unexpected shut-off during testing could indicate extreme high blood sugar. Should this occur, noted WebMD, a healthcare professional should be immediately involved.
A blood glucose level of 1024 mg/dL is significantly high, as well as remote. But, because the high level is still possible, said WebMD, LifeScan announced in a press release that, “Because [the OneTouch® Verio® IQ meters] do not provide an appropriate warning … diagnosis and treatment of extreme hyperglycemia may be delayed or incorrect treatment may be given resulting in potentially serious health risk or fatality.”
The OneTouch® Verio® IQ boasts simple testing, clear displays in any light, easy-to-read numbers, a color screen, smaller size, on-screen messaging, one-step tagging, and testing that is easy for left- and right-handers, alike.
