According to an article on medtechdive.com, in 2022, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) saw a 15-year high in Class I medical device recalls, as reported by Sedgwick. The FDA managed 70 Class I recalls, the highest risk classification, in 2022, compared to a five-year average of 47. Eighteen of these recalls took place […]
According to an article on medtechdive.com, in 2022, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) saw a 15-year high in Class I medical device recalls, as reported by Sedgwick. The FDA managed 70 Class I recalls, the highest risk classification, in 2022, compared to a five-year average of 47. Eighteen of these recalls took place in the final quarter. Mislabeling was the leading cause of recalls in three out of the last five quarters.
Companies such as Abbott, Baxter, GE HealthCare, Medtronic, and Philips faced Class I recalls in the previous year, a category designated by the FDA for issues with the potential to result in severe injury or death. This led to a record-breaking year for Class I recalls.
Sedgwick revealed the 15-year high in Class I recalls after analyzing data from the fourth quarter. During the last three months of the year, the overall number of recalls of any classification rose by 8.1% sequentially, and the number of recalled units increased by approximately 10 million to 61.98 million.
Mislabeling was the primary cause of recalls in the fourth quarter, consistent with three of the past five quarters, followed by quality. The number of recalls related to software, the leading cause of recalls in the third quarter, decreased. Software accounted for 15 recalls in the final quarter, compared to 46 events in the previous period.
Based on January’s data, the increase in recalls between the third and fourth quarters may persist into 2023, according to the report. Sedgwick recorded 135 recalls in January, compared to a monthly average of 80 in the fourth quarter. The number of recalled units is also trending higher than the rate observed in the fourth quarter.
Sedgwick highlighted the FDA’s use of Section 518 authority, which permits the agency to require manufacturers to inform patients and providers of risks, as a significant development in medical device recalls. The FDA utilized this power a year ago to mandate Philips to inform patients about its respiratory device recall, as the company’s efforts up to that point had been deemed “inadequate” by the agency.
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