Abbott Laboratories Abbot Laboratories Overview

Abbott Laboratories

Abbot Laboratories Overview

Abbott Laboratories is a 120-year-old global company that currently employs approximately 90,000 people (Abbott.com, 2011). The company researchers, develops, and markets a wide range of health and health care-related products that span the entire life cycle from prenatal care to geriatric care. The major areas of Abbott Laboratories products are pharmaceutical products, nutritional products, diagnostic instruments and testing materials, medical and surgical devices, animal and veterinary health products, and technologies for vision health (Abbott.com, 2011).

One of the current problems facing Abbott Laboratories is the significant decline in the sales volume of its cholesterol drug Niaspan as a result of concerns about its safety and effectiveness raised in a U.S. government study that was halted in May of this year (Loftus, 2011). Another of the current problems faced by Abbott Laboratories is the risk of organized major pirating thefts of valuable health care products for sale on the international black market, such as in connection with the June 19, 2011 theft of an entire tractor trailer's worth of glucose monitoring products in Louisville, Kentucky (Reuters.com, 2011).

Abbott Products

Some of the most successful and well-known Abbott Laboratories products include their infant nutrition and adult nutritional support products, such as Similac, Ensure, Glucerna, AdvantEdge, Body-for-LIFE and ZonePerfect (Abbott.com, 2011). Its nutritional products also include those designed for medical nutritional needs and the related feeding devices required by patients with special dietary needs attributable to injury, illness, long-term respiratory conditions, and food allergies. Abbott's pharmaceutical product lines provide HIV treatments, long-term management of rheumatoid arthritis, digestive system and autoimmune disorders, as well as of psychological disorders, neurological conditions, endocrine disorders, circulatory system problems, and weight control and weight loss management (Abbott.com, 2011).

Abbott Laboratories develops and manufactures a wide range of medical diagnostic instruments and testing materials used clinical medical facilities, research laboratories, and in home-care situations for the detection and treatment of infectious diseases, cancer, diabetes, genetic conditions, and general indices of human health (Abbot.com, 2011). The company considers immunodiagnostics to be the principal focus of its contribution to the diagnostic sciences. It provides molecular diagnostic equipment and systems for the detection of genetic mutations and to manage the diseases associated with them. Abbott Laboratories is also a major supplier of hand-held point-of-care diagnostics and blood glucose monitoring devices that enable health care professionals and patients manage a wide range of disorders (Abbot.com, 2011).

Current Challenges and Problems