On December 22, Abbott Diabetes Care announced that it had initiated a voluntary recall of nearly 359 million Precision Xtra, Precision Xceed Pro, Medisense Optium, Optium EZ, and ReliOn Ultima blood glucose test strips in the United States and Puerto Rico. The affected strips may give falsely low blood glucose readings, which can cause users to try to raise their blood glucose when it is unnecessary or to fail to treat high blood glucose levels.
The issue appears to be related to longer-than-expected fill times (meaning the strips take longer than expected to absorb the blood sample). The strips, which are sold both in retail and online settings, are used with Abbott’s Precision Xtra, Precision Xceed Pro, MediSense Optium, Optium, and Optium EZ, and ReliOn Ultima blood glucose monitoring systems. The blood glucose meters are not affected by the recall and can continue to be used by consumers.
To view a list of the 359 affected test strip lots, scroll to the bottom of this page for a downloadable PDF from Abbott. Consumers are advised to discontinue use of any test strips from this lot and to request a free set of replacement strips from Abbott. To learn how to order the free replacement strips and what steps to take if you must use affected test strips in the meantime, click here.
And for more information about the recall, see Abbott’s Web site or the press release on the Web site of the Food and Drug Administration, or call Abbott Diabetes Care Customer Service at (800) 448-5234.
