More of a FYI than news if anyone is interested TOKYO (Nikkei)--Pentax Corp. (7750) aims to strengthen its endoscope business by teaming up with TeraRecon Inc.
The tie-up with the U.S. firm will help enhance the diagnostic functions of Pentax's products. The California-based manufacturer of medical imaging systems has expertise in a technology for reproducing 3-D images on-screen at high speed using data from such diagnostic systems as CT (computerized tomography) scanners. By integrating this technology into its endoscopes, Pentax will be able to offer a system that can display 3-D images from an image diagnostic machine and an endoscope side by side. The system will give doctors a better diagnostic tool in cancer treatment, for example, by providing a view inside the body that an endoscope alone could not. Pentax also plans to expand its artificial bone and other medical businesses to bolster its medical products division, which already generates about 60% of its operating profit. Pentax has a roughly 2% stake in TeraRecon. (The Nihon Keizai Shimbun Friday morning edition)
