A ballpoint pen. The first Kodak camera. And a paper drinking straw.

A wearable glucose monitoring system. A wire placed into the brain designed to aid your motor function. And a minimally invasive heart valve repair device.

The difference between these two lists?

The former represents leading-edge technology in 1888, when Abbott began doing business.

The latter is a small sampling of the impressive technologies that are currently part of the Abbott portfolio.

While pharmaceutical science played an important role when Dr. Wallace Abbott began his business, and continued for decades, extraordinary technological advances in the life sciences have since become the company's primary focus.

This scientific progress has come in many forms and disciplines.

• Infant formula that more closely mimics breast milk.
• Developing accurate and efficient diagnostic tests.
• Tackling age-old health problems that impact the quality of life.
• Battling the scourge of chronic pain and its considerable impact on quality of life.
• And treating heart failure, which so often takes a life

Through it all, our forward-thinking professionals are always looking for new ways to improve healthcare.

The pace at which we're developing life-changing technologies across a broad spectrum of health issues is so pronounced, we understand that expectations have risen as well.

We can't be "once-in-a-lifetime" developers. We must be "Everyday Innovators."

Please take a moment and watch a small sample of what Abbott is doing to advance health-related technology and improve lives around the world.