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                       [AccuMed INTERNATIONAL, INC. LOGO]
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                          AccuMed INTERNATIONAL, INC.


Contact:
AccuMed International, Inc.
Paul F. Lavallee, Chairman and CEO
Norman J. Pressman, Ph.D., President and Chief Scientific Officer
(312) 642-9200

             AccuMed International Inc. Signs Definitive Agreement
                To Be Acquired By Ampersand Medical Corporation


CHICAGO, Feb. 8 - AccuMed International, Inc. (OTC Bulletin Board: ACMI) today
announced that the company has signed a definitive agreement to be acquired by
Ampersand Medical Corporation (OTC Bulletin Board: AMPM). The terms of the
agreement have been approved by the directors of both companies. The
transaction is subject to final approval by the shareholders of AccuMed. The
Companies expect to close the transaction during the second quarter of 2001.

AccuMed's preferred and common stockholders will exchange all of their
outstanding shares for a combination of Ampersand's new Series A Convertible
Preferred Stock and Common Stock. A total of 4 million newly issued and
registered common shares would be issued to AccuMed's stockholders assuming
conversion of all shares of Series A Preferred Stock.

"Our engineering staff combined with the scientific and engineering staff of
Ampersand, will bring added value to AccuMed's current base of customers. The
expanded staff will also be able to offer a broader range of solutions than at
present," said Paul Lavallee, Chairman and CEO of AccuMed.

"The combination of AccuMed's patent and technology portfolios with Ampersand's
cancer-screening platform creates a larger and stronger base from which
Ampersand can develop and grow," said Peter Gombrich, Chairman and CEO of
Ampersand Medical Corporation. "The integration of Ampersand products, such as
the Samba Telemedicine System and Image Analysis system, into existing AccuMed
development contracts should offer opportunities to enhance service to the
customer as well as increase our revenues and profitability. Conversely, the
integration of AccuMed products with our clinical trials and studies reduces
project costs and offers the opportunity to increase revenue, enhance core
technology and rapidly access new markets," Grombrich concluded.

AccuMed International is an advanced diagnostics- and information-solutions
company that designs, builds and supplies cytology and histology products to
improve the quality of cell-based specimen analysis. The company's product
lines, include AcCell


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computer-aided microscopes and AcCell-Savant, encompass electronic-imaging
systems and image-analysis software. AccuMed has most recently focused on the
customization of these products for specific applications.

Except for the historical information contained herein, the matter discussed in
this news release are deemed "forward-looking statements" under federal
securities laws that involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ
materially from those in the forward-looking statements depending on a number of
factors, including, among other things, the ability to maintain long-term
relationships with corporate partners, the ability to bring products to market
through the regulatory approval process, uncertainty of future profitability,
financing requirements, and other factors detailed in AccuMed's filing with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.

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For further information
Visit AccuMed's web site at http://www.accumed.com

For AccuMed investor information, contact Paul F. Lavallee, Chairman and CEO
Telephone: (312) 642-9200  FAX: (312) 642-3101  E-mail: ir@accumed.com