ALAMEDA, Calif. — Abbott plans to ship its new FreeStyle blood glucose test strips starting later this summer, will a full rollout expected by this fall.

The pharmaceutical company said Thursday that the FreeStyle glucose test strips received 510(k) clearance from the Food and Drug Administration.

The new FreeStyle test strips, which followed the recent clearance of Abbott’s FreeStyle Lite glucose test strips, are designed to minimize interference during blood glucose testing plus offer a better testing experience, according to the company.

Like the FreeStyle Lite glucose test strips, the new FreeStyle test strips do not use the GDH-PQQ enzyme, which can be affected by common nonglucose sugars, Abbott said. The new FreeStyle test strips use a GDH-FAD enzyme that is unaffected by common nonglucose sugars, such as maltose or galactose, and minimizes the potential for other interference.

"Abbott’s new FreeStyle test strips offer innovative technology that delivers on what patients and health care professionals demand in diabetes care," commented Heather Mason, senior vice president of Abbott Diabetes Care. "The innovative technology minimizes interference and is designed to make the new FreeStyle test strips easier to use."

The new FreeStyle test strips are compatible with all FreeStyle blood glucose monitoring systems, eliminating the need to switch meters, according to Abbott. The FreeStyle strips feature a new, easier-to-use tapered design with ZipWik tabs that offers a better blood glucose testing experience. The new strips are designed to ensure faster blood application and to reduce the number of error messages and wasted test strips.

The first shipments of new FreeStyle test strips are slated to be sent to U.S. customers in August. Retailers and consumers can expect widespread availability by the end of October.