Shielded IV Catheter Cleared by FDA

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared the Insyte Autoguard-P shielded intravenous (IV) catheter, from Becton, Dickinson and Company (BD, Franklin Lakes, NJ, USA). The catheter incorporates a passsive retraction feature developed jointly by BD and Med-Design Corp. under an exclusive license from Med-Design. The feature assures the retraction of the catheter needle into a safety shield during the normal insertion of the catheter into the vein. The Insyte is the latest addition to the BD Autoguard family of shielded IV catheters, which includes a catheter for small vein access and the midline introducer.

BD is committed to being the global leader in IV catheter technology, said Bill Marshall, vice president of the infusion therapy business of BD Medical Systems. This is expecially true with regard to the rapidly growing segment of safety-engineered devices.