FDA Warns of Massive Recall of Diabetes Test Strips

If you have diabetes and use glucose test strips to check your blood sugar levels, you need to check the brand name of those strips. A massive recall of up to 62 million strips made by Nova Diabetes Care has just been announced by the company and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The FDA's warning says the strips can show incorrect, abnormally high readings and patients need to discontinue their use immediately.


The agency said the strips are contaminated with a chemical used in the manufacturing process, which interferes with readings.


Twenty-one lots of the Nova Max Glucose Test Strips, as well as Nova Max Plus glucose meter kits that contain the test strips from the recalled lots, are part of the voluntary recall, HealthDay News reports.

The recall affects certain lots of the strips distributed in the United States, Canada, Chile, Peru, Argentina, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica and a half-dozen other countries. Nova Diabetes Care sells them through retail stores and websites, according to the Associated Press.

If a faulty strip shows the blood glucose reading is falsely elevated, "the person could inject more insulin than is really needed," leading to hypoglycemia, or low blood glucose, Virginia Peragallo-Dittko, executive director of the Diabetes and Obesity Institute at Winthrop University Hospital in Mineola, N.Y., said in an email.

The symptoms of hypoglycemia "include shaking, sweating and confusion. People can pass out or have seizures" if they're not given sweet drinks or glucose right away, she said.

To find out if you have test strips from the recalled lots, you can go to the Nova Diabetes Care website or call the company toll-free at 800-681-7390.

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