Medtronic continues push into diabetes market, acquires Danish technology

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota — Medtronic on Tuesday made another in a series of maneuvers to strengthen its position in the diabetes market by acquiring glucose-monitoring technology from the Denmark-based PreciSense.

The purchase follows two related mid-May announcements: that Medtronic would by late summer open a 1,400-worker Diabetes Therapy Management and Education Center in San Antonio, and that it would work with Eli Lily to market their diabetes products.

The Minnesota medical device giant will need help from its smaller, high-growth sectors like diabetes if it wants to achieve sales and revenue projections. The company also on Tuesday told investors and analysts it still expected 5 percent to 8 percent annual sales growth, despite the fact it expects in this fiscal year more modest sales growth in its major businesses of heart rhythm (2 percent to 5 percent) and spine (3 to 7 percent).

Meanwhile, it expects its diabetes business to grow between 10 percent to 14 percent this fiscal year.

Medtronic acquired PreciSense’s work on a continuous glucose monitoring technology to further its development on a closed-loop system for diabetics — essentially an “artificial pancreas” that imitates the body’s normal insulin delivery and response. Medtronic already has a continuous monitor and insulin pump.

Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.