Medical kits, surgical packs recalled due to serious safety risks

Avid Medical has recalled several of its medical convenience kits due to fungal contamination risk from an applicator used to sanitize skin before surgery or catheter procedures, the Food and Drug Administration announced today. FDA has not received any associated injury reports, but skin preparation products contaminated with this type of fungus can cause serious infection, illness or death, the agency said. The company alerted customers to the recall on April 9 and instructed them to discard any inventory on hand. 

In other news, DeRoyal Industries has recalled surgical procedure packs that contain 1% lidocaine mislabeled as 0.5% bupivacaine. Though both lidocaine and bupivacaine are local anesthetics, their dosing is different. If 1% lidocaine is given to the patient instead of 0.5% bupivacaine, the patient may experience pain during the procedure, FDA said. The agency has not received any associated injury reports. The company alerted customers to the recall on May 14 with instructions to discontinue their use. 

Health care professionals may report adverse reactions or quality problems associated with these devices to the FDA MedWatch program.