Abbott to Acquire Visiogen, Expanding Vision Care...( ABBOTT PARK Ill. an...),Health

ABBOTT PARK, Ill. and IRVINE, Calif., Sept. 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Abbott (NYSE: ABT) announced today a definitive agreement to acquire Visiogen, Inc. for $400 million in cash, providing the company with a next-generation accommodating intraocular lens (IOL) technology to address presbyopia for cataract patients.

Visiogen, a privately held company based in Irvine, Calif., with European operations in Karlsruhe, Germany, is an ophthalmic medical device company specializing in the development of new vision alternatives for patients with cataracts.

"This acquisition demonstrates Abbott's continued commitment to vision care and our desire to introduce and accelerate technologies that have the ability to make a difference in the lives of millions of people around the world," said John M. Capek, executive vice president, Medical Devices, Abbott. "Combining Visiogen's accommodating lens technology with Abbott's existing medical optics portfolio expands our ability to offer a diverse set of refractive options to our ophthalmic customers and the patients they serve."

"We are thrilled to join forces with Abbott to bring this much-anticipated technology to market," said Reza Zadno, founder, CEO and president of Visiogen, Inc. "The global clinical results with Synchrony(R) are extremely encouraging, and the opportunity to leverage Abbott Medical Optics' extensive commercialization infrastructure means that many more patients will benefit from this exciting advancement in cataract and presbyopia correction."

Visiogen's accommodating IOL, called Synchrony, is designed to deliver improved vision at all distances, potentially eliminating the need for glasses or contact lenses, reducing glare and nighttime halos, and improving contrast se
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