Partnership between Japan and the United States for early development of pediatric medical devices ― harmonization by doing for children ―

Background: The Harmonization By Doing (HBD) program was established in 2003 as a partnership among stakeholders of academia, industry and regulatory agencies in Japan and the United States, with a primary focus on streamlining processes of global medical device development for cardiovascular medical devices. While HBD has traditionally focused on development of devices intended to treat conditions prevalent in adults, in 2016, HBD established the “HBD-for-Children” program, which focuses on the development of pediatric devices as the development of medical devices for pediatric use lags behind that of medical devices for adults in both countries. Methods and Results: Activities of the program have included: (1) conducting a survey with industry to better understand the challenges that constrain the development of pediatric medical devices; (2) categorizing pediatric medical devices into five categories based on global availability and exploring concrete solutions for the early application and regulatory approval in both geographies; and (3) facilitating global clinical trials of pediatric medical devices in both countries. Conclusions: The establishment of the HBD-for-Children program is significant because it represents a global initiative for the introduction of pediatric medical devices for patients in a timely manner. Through the program, academia, industry and regulatory agencies can work together to facilitate innovative pediatric device development from a multi-stakeholder perspective. This activity could also encourage industry partners to pursue the development of pediatric medical devices.