Software in Medical Devices, by MD101 Consulting

The IMDFR organization published in January 2024 a new document on Medical Device Software: Considerations for Device and Risk Characterization
Say briefly, this document is a gem!

We saw in the previous post how the lifetime of a SaMD can be defined. Let's continue with the operations that can affect this lifetime.

Great news! The FDA announced their list of new or revised guidances for 2022. Software is going to be privileged, with 6 guidances on Clinical Decision Support software, SaMD risk categorization, cybersecurity, QMS SW, and Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning. The draft guidance Content of Premarket Submissions for Device Software Functions opens the ball in 2021. This draft guidance will supersede the guidance titled Content of Premarket Submissions for Software Contained in Medical Device, when it is published in its final version. This little change in the title is a sign of the times.

The definition of SOUP, and the requirements related to their lifecycle in IEC 62304 processes, are totally independent of any technology. Making no technological assumption, that's the way the standard is thought, so that it can be applied to any health software.
Cloud-based applications and web technologies make an intensive use of SOUPs. Let's see how IEC 62304 requirements can be applied to these technologies.

We know that Drug Prescription Assistance Software are software as a medical device, thanks to the European Court of Justice. But how to CE mark that kind of software?

Here is a quick follow-up of the new version of the FDA Guidance titled Medical Device Accessories – Describing Accessories and Classification Pathways, published in December 2017. This comes a bit in parallel to the Section 3060 guidance described in the previous post on the 21st Century Cures Act.