In a deal expected to close by the end of the year, Stryker has signed an agreement to acquire Ascent Healthcare Solutions, the U.S. market leader in the reprocessing and remanufacturing of medical devices, for $525 million in cash, Stryker says in a statement. The privately held Ascent has facilities in Phoenix and Lakeland, Fla., that reprocess cardiovascular, orthopedics, gastroenterology and general surgery devices. It will continue to operate as Ascent Healthcare Solutions, but it will become a Stryker division operating under the MedSurg group.