ACMD meeting statement, Meeting 69, 13 October 2022

Role of the ACMD in the TGA's regulatory decision making process

The Advisory Committee on Medical Devices (ACMD) is a statutory advisory committee established by the Therapeutic Goods Regulations 1990. The committee provides independent expert advice on specific scientific and technical matters in order to aid the TGA's decision making and other regulatory processes.

While the advice provided by the ACMD is an important element in the undertaking of the TGA's regulatory functions, it forms only part of the information that is available to delegates when they make a regulatory decision under the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989. It is important to note that while appropriate consideration will always be given to such advice, the TGA is not obliged to follow the specific recommendations and advice given by the committee.

It should also be noted that information about advice provided by the committee may not become publicly available for some time after the committee has provided that advice. The purpose of this Meeting Statement is to describe in general terms the matters considered by the committee at each meeting and for it to be available as soon as reasonably practical after the relevant meeting.

Update on matters where the committee previously provided advice and a TGA decision has been made

There were no decisions made for items previously considered by the committee.

Overview of the medical devices referred for advice

At the 69th ACMD meeting the committee considered the following devices:

• Components of two knee replacement systems
• A device that uses infrared light to treat eye problems
• A catheter used to treat congenital heart abnormalities
• A surgical mesh used for hernia repair
• A brain injury screening test
• A urinary incontinence device
• Spinal cord stimulators

The committee considered whether the benefits outweighed the risks for the devices and whether adequate evidence had been provided to demonstrate safety and performance through compliance with the Essential Principles.

Further information

Consideration and management of declarations of actual or potential conflicts of interest by committee members occurs by the Chair, committee members and the Department prior to and during the meeting (as appropriate).

For meeting #69, three participants indicated a potential conflict of interest:

One member indicated they had been a speaker for one of the manufacturers, however, this work was on an unrelated topic. The committee assessed this and did not deem it a conflict; the member participated fully in the meeting.

A second participant declared a conflict of interest relating to fees received from the manufacturer to provide educational material on an unrelated topic. The committee considered this and concluded there to be no conflict of interest.

A third participant declared they regularly perform surgery using the broad type of device being discussed, however, have no affiliation or stake (financial or otherwise) in any company or organisation manufacturing or distributing these goods. The committee considered this and found there to be no conflict of interest.

Meeting statements are made publicly available after each meeting.

For further information on the ACMD, please visit the  ACMD Webpage or contact the ACMD Secretariat by email acmd.secretariat@health.gov.au.