Science & Innovation

Life and health are invaluable. That is why Abbott concentrates on applying breakthrough science to develop effective treatments across its broad base of businesses – devices, pharmaceuticals and nutritionals – to solve unmet medical needs for people around the world. We define science as any innovation that will lead to improved health care options – from new approaches to drug discovery to easy-to-read packaging that helps patient compliance.

Abbott scientists are advancing thinking in areas such as diabetes, immunology, nutritionals, oncology and vascular disease. The pace of our work in the discovery and development of new technologies and treatments is enhanced by our global network of more than 7,000 scientists in Brussels, Canada, Germany, Japan, Mexico, and the United States (Austin, Texas, Lake County, Illinois, Columbus, Ohio, Santa Clara, California and Worcester, Massachusetts).

Science: Our Foundation

The quality of our science is reflected in our diagnostic and therapeutic advances – and in the strides we have made in the science of discovery. We invent novel diagnostic and treatment options in a number of disciplines, including therapies that target specific causes of immunological diseases; new methods of minimally invasive blood glucose testing; and important work in the field of drug-eluting and bioabsorbable stents for vascular procedures; and many others.

From goals as diverse as developing proprietary advanced technologies that can shorten the time necessary to identify disease targets and produce the drugs that act against these targets, to inventing innovative and helpful packaging that gives parents more convenient baby formula options or pharmacists easier labels to read, our scientists are continuously looking for the best methods to improve lives.

From Breakthroughs to Improvements

Even in its earliest days, Abbott recognized the rich therapeutic potential of biologics and predicted that approaches to medicine would include both biologics and small molecules. In addition to breakthroughs using each of those approaches, we have made improvements to certain delivery systems: for example, using Meltrex technology, Kaletra is now in a tablet form. Abbott is continually investing in novel approaches to the discovery of new medicines such as conducting the first ever natural history study to advance the scientific understanding about the role of vulnerable plaque in heart attacks; creating imaging tools that reveal how medicine reacts in the body; and creating compounds for research purposes that lead to an increased understanding of Alzheimer's disease and the pain process.