| 1972
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Abbott's
first hepatitis test, called the Ausria-125,
was introduced in 1972. At the time in the United States,
approximately 30 thousand people per year contracted serum
hepatitis, and in 1,500 to 3,000 of these cases the infection
was fatal. Although there were hepatitis tests available,
none of them had the sensitivity to detect infection with
enough certainty. Ausria offered that sensitivity,
and soon more than 70 percent of all blood drawn in the
United States was tested with this assay.
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| 1974
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Abbott
introduces Ausria II, an improved hepatitis test
that allows hospitals and blood banks, for the first time,
to supply blood for transfusion the same day it is drawn.
Abbott also introduces a non-radioactive hepatitis screening
test called Auscell, making hepatitis screening
economical for even the smallest blood bank.
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| 1978
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Abbott
introduces the first commercial product for the diagnosis
of hepatitis A.
|
| 1979
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Abbott
introduces the Quantum, an automated immunoassay
system which employs a new enzyme immunoassay (EIA) technology.
The extended shelf life and reduced batch costs of EIA
testing make immunoassays economically available to a
much wider range of hospital and clinical laboratories.
|
| 1981
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Abbott
introduces the TDx system, which incorporates the
first commercial application of fluorescence polarization.
|
| 1985
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Abbott
develops the first diagnostic test to screen blood and
blood products for HIV .
|
| 1986
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Abbott
develops TestPack, a self contained diagnostic
test that allows doctors to perform sophisticated immunoassay
tests while the patient is in the doctor's office.
|
| 1988
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Abbott
introduces IMx, an automated immunoassay
system that improves laboratory turnaround and efficiency
by several orders of magnitude.
|
| 1991
|
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Abbott
develops the first automated test for monitoring prostate
specific antigen (PSA), an invaluable tool for managing
therapy for prostate cancer.
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| 1992 |
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Abbott
enters the hematology market with the acquisition of Sequoia
Turner Corporation
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| 1994
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Abbott
launches AxSYM, a system that combines the technologies
employed in the IMx and TDx systems in a
single system.
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| 1995
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Abbott
develops ABBOTT PRISM, the first fully automated
system for high-volume blood screening laboratories.
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| 1996 |
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Abbott
enters the glucose monitoring market with the acquisition
of MediSense, Inc.
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| 1997
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Abbott
launches the first combination test to screen blood for
HTLV-I and HTLV-II, retroviruses implicated in a rare
form of cancer and in some neurological diseases.
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| 1998
|
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Abbott
launches an unprecedented number of new systems, including
Alcyon and Aeroset, two innovative clinical
chemistry analyzers and Determine, a line of
self-performing assays targeted to emerging health care
markets. The company also broadens its product offering
with the acquisition of International Murex Technologies
Corp., adding microtiter-based immunoassays and microbiology
products.
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| 1999
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Abbott
introduces the ARCHITECT i2000, the first in
a planned series of analyzers designed to bring unprecedented
flexibility to the clinical lab.
Murex Acquisition
Vysis Acquisition
|
| 2003
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Abbott launches three new immunodiagnostics systems in the Architect platform Architect c8000, i2000SR and the integrated ci8200.
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| 2004
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Abbott launches the CD1800 to continue the tradition of reliability of the Cell Dyn Hematology systems. Abbott also develops the three new addition to the Cell Dyn family: the Cell Dyn Pearl and Pearl SL and the Cell Dyn Sapphire, the top-of-the-line Hematology System to be launched in February 2005.
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