McGrath Mac (videolaryngoscope)

2023: Thousands of laryngoscopes stolen, offered to hospitals

On September 27, 2023, Medtronic announced that it had stolen thousands of defective McGrath Mac series videolaryngoscopes. These defective devices are sold on the Internet - through social networks, various marketplaces, etc.

Medtronic's official notice says the stolen videolaryngoscopes failed internal quality checks. They were not intended for sale or distribution in health care facilities. Defective products were subject to destruction, but were somehow stolen and put up for sale. Medtronic works closely with regulatory agencies and law enforcement agencies to quickly remove ads for the sale of low-quality products. In addition, measures are being taken to seize and recover the stolen equipment.

Medtronic emphasizes that the use of defective videolaryngoscopes can result in harm to patients. In particular, we are talking about unsuccessful laryngoscopy and (or) intubation procedures, potentially leading to respiratory failure (including hypercapnia), hypoxia, bradycardia, arrhythmia, tissue damage, etc.

In total, more than 5,700 McGrath Mac series videolaryngoscopes were stolen. Moreover, only about 1,650 of them have serial numbers. Other defective devices were either not initially labeled or their IDs were removed. It is also noted that such products do not have proper packaging.

Patient safety remains a top priority for Medtronic. We encourage healthcare professionals to purchase products only from trusted and reliable sources, such as directly from Medtronic or its authorized distributors, the company said in a statement.[1]

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