Medical technology is at the mercy of the same growth factors as all other new technologies, and true to form, emerging markets and technological advances are the main factors promoting growth in the sector. However, unlike the consumer tech market, medical tech is at the mercy of stringent government regulations.
While these regulations help ensure the safety and usability of equipment they also put the brakes on market growth, and are one of the main reasons why the Global Medical Technology Market is only posting a CAGR of 4.40 percent from 2013-2018.
However, TechNavio analysts have narrowed down a few strong trends in the market that will aid in market growth over the projected period and contribute to the development of better medical tech.
Emergence of User-friendly Technologies
Traditionally, long-term monitoring of patients has been more or less restricted to hospital visits. But the emergence of new, user-friendly technologies permits frequent patient evaluation without any assistance from a physician.
For instance, Honeywell markets a series of HomMed products such as ChoicemMed Fingertip Pulse Oximeter and PiKo-1 Electronic Peak Flow & FEV1 Meter to monitor physiological parameters such as blood pressure and heart rate at home. These readings can be used by physicians to continuously monitor a patient and to design the best treatment strategy.
Closer monitoring is especially beneficial for therapies such as insulin therapy and blood pressure therapy, where treatment exposure can vary a great deal. Further, advancement in these technologies can significantly lower healthcare expenditure by reducing instances of over-dosage or under-dosage.
Generic Entry
A rise in pricing pressure and the increasing cost of the device approval process have paved the way for generic entry into the market. Generic medical devices are less expensive than their innovative counterparts and, thus, are accessible for people with limited finances.
In March 2012, Emerge Medical collaborated with Premier Healthcare Alliance to offer a low-cost alternative for Emerge’s orthopedic devices. These low-priced devices are intended to reduce the financial burden on patients and overcome the issues related to inconsistences in the pricing of innovator medical devices.
This, in turn, might reduce the burden on reimbursement agencies and decrease the market share of innovator versions.
Shifting Focus toward Untapped Markets
Medical technology vendors are shifting their focus towards developing economies. Lenient regulatory guidelines, low manufacturing costs, skilled labor, and limited market competition are some of the incentives offered by these areas, which can decrease the overall development cost of the medical device and thereby increase the manufacturer’s profit.
These factors, paired with increasing political and regulatory reforms are set to increase the market revenue in emerging markets during the forecast period.
Increase in M&A
Mergers and acquisitions help companies enter new markets and diversify their product portfolios. Acquisitions of local vendors increase the market penetration of the parent company, and acquisitions of research-oriented firms provide financial support to the innovative technologies undergoing development in these firms.
This, in turn, expedites the research and development timeline of the technology, enabling earlier market entry.
