Abbott (NYSE: ABT) announced it received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its new, compact hematology instrument, CELL-DYN Emerald(TM). Abbott's CELL-DYN Emerald will expand the company's hematology platform by offering a high performance, affordable solution for small to mid- sized clinical laboratories.

As small to mid-sized hospital laboratories and clinics continue to seek greater efficiency and productivity under tighter space limitations, Emerald's small size, touch screen software, and reliability offer an easy-to-use, compact table/bench top instrument for performing complete blood counts (CBCs), a test routinely ordered by doctors to assess a patient's overall health and to screen for a variety of disorders such as anemia and infection.

This new hematology system has many automation features designed to save laboratories' time, allowing them to improve productivity and reduce costs. Time saving features of Abbott's CELL-DYN Emerald include:

-- A full touch-screen monitor to simplify operation.

-- One-button startup.

-- Low reagent consumption.

-- Automatic cleaning and shutdown features.

-- Barcode labeled reagents.

A key facet of CELL-DYN Emerald is its compact size -- weighing just 9kg (< 20 lbs) -- as well as its intuitive software interface that allows for easy navigation and quick results…