Mother and son jogging Mother and son jogging Mother and son jogging Mother and son jogging
News Release

Abbott Introduces New and Improved Precision Xtra(TM) Advanced Diabetes Management System

June 5, 2004 at 8:01 AM EDT

-- New Glucose Monitor Shown at American Diabetes Association's 64th Annual

                    Scientific Sessions and Exposition --

ALAMEDA, Calif., June 5 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Abbott Laboratories (NYSE: ABT) today introduced the new and improved Precision Xtra(TM) Advanced Diabetes Management System at the American Diabetes Association's 64th Annual Scientific Sessions and Exposition in Orlando, Fla. The new monitor offers advanced diabetes management capabilities as well as the ability to measure both blood glucose and blood ketone with a single monitor.

Precision Xtra(TM) is the first home glucose monitor that also allows people with diabetes to test their blood for ketone levels. Elevated ketone levels can signify a risk for developing diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), a life- threatening condition caused by acute insulin deficiency. DKA must be recognized and treated as soon as possible in order to prevent serious illness or even death. In addition, the American Diabetes Association affirms that blood ketone testing is preferred over urine ketone testing as a more reliable method of diagnosing diabetic ketoacidosis(1). The new and improved Precision Xtra Advanced Diabetes Management System will be available in the third quarter of 2004.

"Proper and regular blood glucose testing is one of the most important ways to manage diabetes," said Arturo Rolla, M.D., assistant clinical professor of medicine, Harvard Medical School. "The Precision Xtra Advanced Diabetes Management System with the unique blood ketone testing capability provides people with diabetes an effective and convenient method for ketone testing and an opportunity to better manage their condition."

The new Precision Xtra system has been designed to provide people living with diabetes a very accurate and reliable monitoring system for managing their blood glucose. The new system requires a small blood sample and delivers results in just 10 seconds. The system also features unique TrueMeasure(TM) technology, which is designed to prevent errors caused by applying an insufficient blood sample, and minimize the effects of interfering substances such as aspirin, vitamin C and acetaminophen. TrueMeasure technology also has an innovative fill-trigger mechanism designed to prevent tests from starting until an adequate blood sample is present, minimizing strip waste.

The Precision Xtra Advanced Diabetes Management System will feature the following easy-to-teach and easy-to-use design elements:

     --  Simple two step testing -- just insert the strip and add a droplet of
         blood;
     --  A three-button design to make testing and programming simple;
     --  Backlit display for testing in low light conditions;
     --  450 test memory with seven-, 14-, and 30-day averaging results that
         can be downloaded to a personal computer; and,
     --  TrueMeasure(TM) technology test strips with the ability to do
         alternative site testing.

Currently, approximately 18.2 million people in the U.S. have diabetes(2), and diabetes is the sixth-leading cause of death in the U.S.(3). One in three Americans born in the year 2000 will develop Type 2 diabetes(4). With the incidence of diabetes expected to increase, more and more people will need to turn to blood glucose monitoring systems to monitor their blood sugar.

In addition to Precision Xtra, Abbott has a full portfolio of products resulting from the recent merger of Abbott's MediSense Products and TheraSense Inc., including FreeStyle(R) Blood Glucose Monitoring System, which requires a very small sample size (0.3 microliter), and FreeStyle(R) Flash Blood Glucose Monitoring System. The FreeStyle Flash combines the world's smallest glucose meter with a very small sample size, a fast test time of about seven seconds, a backlit display, four customizable daily alarms, and a lighted test strip port for easy testing at night or in other low light conditions.

"By combining TheraSense and MediSense, we have significantly strengthened Abbott's presence in the rapidly growing blood glucose monitoring business," said Ed Fiorentino, president, Abbott Diabetes Care. "Abbott is committed to providing technologies and products to help people with diabetes better manage their condition, and moving forward Precision Xtra will play an important role in Abbott's family of blood glucose management tools."

About Abbott Laboratories

Abbott Diabetes Care, the newly combined business of Abbott's MediSense business and TheraSense Inc., is a leader in the development of innovative products designed to help patients better manage their diabetes. Based in Alameda, Calif., Abbott Diabetes Care designs, develops and manufactures several leading-edge glucose monitoring systems and test strips for use in both home and hospital settings. Among its popular MediSense and TheraSense brands are Precision Xtra(TM), Precision PCx(TM), FreeStyle(R) and FreeStyle Flash(TM). The company also produces Precision Link(R), a diabetes data management system. For more information about Abbott Diabetes Care, visit http://www.AbbottDiabetesCare.com .

Abbott Laboratories is a global, broad-based health care company devoted to the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of pharmaceuticals and medical products, including nutritionals, devices and diagnostics. The company employs more than 55,000 people and markets its products in more than 130 countries.

Abbott's news releases and other information are available on the company's Web site at http://www.abbott.com .

    (1) "Blood ketone testing methods ... are available and are preferred over
         urine ketone testing for diagnosing and monitoring ketoacidosis."
         (ADA Position Statement:  "Tests of Glycemia in Diabetes," Diabetes
         Care, Vol 25, Suppl 1., Jan 2002).
    (2)  American Diabetes Association, "National Diabetes Fact Sheet"
    (3)  American Diabetes Association, "National Diabetes Fact Sheet"
    (4)  JAMA, Vol 290, No 14, 1884-1890

SOURCE  Abbott Laboratories
    -0-                             06/05/2004
    /CONTACT:  Media, Martha McKennitt, +1-781-276-6280, or cell,
+1-781-789-0782, or Financial Community, Christy Wistar, +1-847-938-4475, both
of Abbott Laboratories/
    /Company News On-Call:  http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/110328.html /
    /Web site:  http://www.abbott.com
                http://www.AbbottDiabetesCare.com /
    (ABT)

CO:  Abbott Laboratories; 64th Annual Scientific Sessions and Exposition
ST:  California, Florida, Illinois
IN:  HEA MTC
SU:  PDT TDS

JL-LC 
-- CGSA001 --
8282 06/05/2004 08:00 EDT http://www.prnewswire.com
alt_text
Quick Links