|
We have not received the complaint device for evaluation since the device has been discarded by the user.Hence, we could not conclusively determine the root cause of the incident.During our follow-up investigation with the complainant, we learned that the surgeon had tested the catheter before use and he found it to be operational.Surgeon had made multiple passes to remove the clot from the patient's vessel before encountering the deflation issue with the balloon.He was able to remove the undeflated balloon from the patient's vessel without requiring any surgical intervention.He further stated that the balloon was operated in a patient with stenotic vessel.There were no fragments left over inside the patient's vessel when he removed the catheter from the patient's vessel.Surgeon felt resistance when removing the thrombus and he clearly stated that the catheter may have been used with excessive force.Our review of the lot history records for this lot did not find any discrepancies either in the manufacturing or packaging process that could be related to this incident.Further, we have not received any other complaints of a similar nature for devices from this lot.Based on the information provided, the device performed properly during initial use.The issue might have occurred when removing the residual adherent thrombus from the patient's vessel.It is also possible that some anatomical (calcification or stenosis in the lesion area ) or procedural factors ( use of excessive force to remove the thrombus) may have contributed to the balloon failure.The arterial embolectomy catheter is not recommended for the removal of fibrous, adherent or calcified material ( eg.Chronic clot, atherosclerotic plaque ).This catheter is not designed to withstand the additional pull force needed to remove these materials there was no injury to the patient as the result of this incident.Please note that we have also submitted manufacturer incident report# 1220948-2020-00039 related to another similar incident that occurred during the same case following the aforementioned incident.
|