Abbott ($ABT) made separate announcements related to devices focused on the eyes. The first was for a deal it reached with Carl Zeiss Meditec to sell the Swiss lensmaker's cataract surgery products alongside its own ocular surgery devices.
Additionally, the devicemaker said the FDA has been given 510(k) clearance for its Cataract Operating System 3 and Liquid Optics Interface 12, which are both used with the company's Catalys precision laser system, MassDevice reported.
By teaming with Zeiss, surgeons will have access to a full suite of offerings, including diagnostics, visualization systems, lens extraction systems, and intraocular lenses, the company said in a release. The agreement is nonexclusive.
"Surgeons should have the choice of the best and most innovative products to maximize clinical outcomes, manage their data, and optimize their workflow," Ludwin Monz, Carl Zeiss Meditec chief executive, said in a statement. "That is why we agreed to expand our customer reach in the United States by making our products available additionally through Abbott."
Last month, Abbott announced it was investing $60 million in an intraocular lens manufacturing plant in Malaysia that will produce 1 million sets of IOLs a year. Cataract product sales account for almost 70% of Abbott's medical optical division, which has outpaced the company's global market growth. During the first half of the year, $605 million of Abbott's total of $2.7 billion in device sales was attributed to medical optics, accounting for a 14% gain.
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