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July 10-11, 2014: Obstetrics and Gynecology Devices Panel of the Medical Devices Advisory Committee Meeting Announcement

Center	Date	Time	Location
CDRH	July 10-11, 2014	8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.	FDA White Oak Campus 10903 New Hampshire Ave. Building 31 Conference Center, the Great Room (rm. 1503) Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Food and Drug Administration

[Docket No. FDA-2014-N-0736]

Obstetrics and Gynecology Devices Panel of the Medical Devices Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting


AGENCY:  Food and Drug Administration, HHS.

ACTION:  Notice.

This notice announces a forthcoming meeting of a public advisory committee of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).  The meeting will be open to the public.

Name of Committee:  Obstetrics and Gynecology Devices Panel of the Medical Devices Advisory Committee.

General Function of the Committee:  To provide advice and recommendations to the Agency on FDA's regulatory issues.

Date and Time:  The meeting will be held on July 10 and 11, 2014, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Location:  FDA White Oak Campus, 10903 New Hampshire Ave., Building 31 Conference Center, the Great Room (rm. 1503), Silver Spring, MD 20993-0002. Information regarding special accommodations due to a disability, visitor parking, and transportation may be accessed at:  http://www.fda.gov/AdvisoryCommittees/default.htm; under the heading "Resources for You," click on "Public Meetings at the FDA White Oak Campus."  Please note that visitors to the White Oak Campus must enter through Building 1.

Contact Person: Shanika Craig, Shanika.Craig@fda.hhs.gov, Center for Devices and Radiological Health, Food and Drug Administration, 10903 New Hampshire Ave., Silver Spring, MD  20993, 301-796-6639, or FDA Advisory Committee Information Line, 1-800-741-8138 (301-443-0572 in the Washington, DC area).  A notice in the Federal Register about last minute modifications that impact a previously announced advisory committee meeting cannot always be published quickly enough to provide timely notice.  Therefore, you should always check the Agency's Web site at http://www.fda.gov/AdvisoryCommittees/default.htm and scroll down to the appropriate advisory committee meeting link, or call the advisory committee information line to learn about possible modifications before coming to the meeting.

Agenda:  On July 10 and 11, 2014, the committee will discuss the safety of laparoscopic power morcellator devices as it pertains to their potential to disseminate and upstage a confined, but undetected (occult) uterine malignancy during laparoscopic hysterectomy or myomectomy. FDA is convening this committee to seek expert scientific and clinical opinion on the risks and benefits of these types of devices when used for these procedures, based on available scientific data. The committee will make recommendations regarding the appropriate use, premarket testing, labeling, and other risk mitigations (including the use of containment bags) for these devices. 

On July 11, 2014, during the afternoon session, the committee will also be asked to discuss the regulatory classification of laparoscopic power morcellator devices when used to cut and extract tissue during gynecologic laparoscopic procedures and to assist FDA in determining the appropriate level of regulatory control necessary for this device type, including discussion of class II (special controls) or reclassification to class III (subject to premarket approval application (PMA)).

FDA intends to make background material available to the public no later than 2 business days before the meeting.  If FDA is unable to post the background material on its Web site prior to the meeting, the background material will be made publicly available at the location of the advisory committee meeting, and the background material will be posted on FDA's Web site after the meeting.  Background material is available at http://www.fda.gov/AdvisoryCommittees/CommitteesMeetingMaterials/MedicalDevices/MedicalDevicesAdvisoryCommittee/default.htm. Scroll down to the appropriate advisory committee meeting link.

The Center for Devices and Radiological Health (CDRH) plans to provide a live webcast of the July 10 and 11, 2014, meeting of the Obstetrics and Gynecology Devices Panel of the Medical Devices Advisory Committee.  While CDRH is working to make webcasts available to the public for all advisory committee meetings held at the White Oak campus, there are instances where the webcast transmission is not successful; staff will work to reestablish the transmission as soon as possible.  The link for the webcast is available at: https://colaboration.fda.gov/obgyd/, or further information regarding the webcast, including the Web address for the webcast, will be made available at least 2 days in advance of the meeting at the following Web site: http://www.fda.gov/AdvisoryCommittees/CommitteesMeetingMaterials/MedicalDevices/MedicalDevicesAdvisoryCommittee/ObstetricsandGynecologyDevices/default.htm.  Select the link for 2014 Meeting Materials.

Procedure:  Interested persons may present data, information, or views, orally or in writing, on issues pending before the committee.  Written submissions may be made to the contact person on or before June 24, 2014. Oral presentations from the public will be scheduled between approximately 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. for both days of this meeting.  Those individuals interested in making formal oral presentations should notify the contact person and submit a brief statement of the general nature of the evidence or arguments they wish to present, the names and addresses of proposed participants, and an indication of the approximate time requested to make their presentation on or before June 16, 2014.  Time allotted for each presentation may be limited.  If the number of registrants requesting to speak is greater than can be reasonably accommodated during the scheduled open public hearing session, FDA may conduct a lottery to determine the speakers for the scheduled open public hearing session.  The contact person will notify interested persons regarding their request to speak by June 19, 2014.

FDA will work with the manufacturers of laparoscopic morcellators and containment bags who wish to make presentations to ensure that adequate time, separate from the approximate time slots for the general open public hearing session, is provided.  Manufacturers interested in making formal presentations to the committee should notify the contact person on or before June 18, 2014.  Manufacturers with common interests are urged to coordinate their oral presentations.

FDA is opening a docket for public comment on this document.  The docket number is FDA-2014-N-0736.  The docket will close on August 11, 2014.  Interested persons are encouraged to use the docket to submit electronic or written comments regarding this meeting.  Submit electronic comments to http://www.regulations.gov.  Comments received on or before July 1, 2014, will be provided to the committee for their consideration. Comments received after July 1, 2014, will be taken into consideration by the Agency.

Submit written comments to the Division of Dockets Management, Food and Drug Administration, 5630 Fishers Lane, rm. 1061, Rockville, MD  20852.  It is only necessary to send one set of comments.  Comments are to be identified with the docket number found in brackets in the heading of this document.  Received comments may be seen in the Divisions of Dockets Management between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday and will be posted to the docket at http://www.regulations.gov. 

Persons attending FDA's advisory committee meetings are advised that the Agency is not responsible for providing access to electrical outlets.

FDA welcomes the attendance of the public at its advisory committee meetings and will make every effort to accommodate persons with physical disabilities or special needs. If you require special accommodations due to a disability, please contact AnnMarie Williams, at Annmarie.Williams@fda.hhs.gov, or 301-796-5966, at least 7 days in advance of the meeting.

FDA is committed to the orderly conduct of its advisory committee meetings.  Please visit our Web site at http://www.fda.gov/AdvisoryCommittees/AboutAdvisoryCommittees/ucm111462.htm for procedures on public conduct during advisory committee meetings.

Notice of this meeting is given under the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. app. 2).

Dated: June 3, 2014.

Leslie Kux,

Assistant Commissioner for Policy.