Medical Ultrasound Systems Markets Worldwide
The Medical Ultrasound market is expected to grow to more than $5.3
billion by 2016, driven primarily by growth in hand-carried ultrasound
(HCU) devices and expansion in emerging geographic and clinical
markets. Overall growth in medical imaging will also continue due to
growing populations of elderly people worldwide, accompanied by a
concurrent rise in chronic disease rates. Main restraints in the
ultrasound market include the slow economy in many countries,
reimbursement restrictions and intense competition from MRI and CT.
Leading competitors in the ultrasound market recognize the significance
of lateral expansion through miniaturization. This is helping
ultrasound gain new ground in medical imaging and stave off competition
from CT and MRI, in areas of overlap in diagnostic imaging. The wide
range of hand-carried or handheld devices ultrasound devices have been
the most significant technological innovation in ultrasound. They range
from laptop-sized devices that can be mounted on a cart or folded and
carried to pocket ultrasound. HCU s will allow ultrasound to
effectively monopolize a vast range of applications in point-of-care
imaging. After Sonosite Inc. first introduced hand-carried ultrasound
in 1999, the global leader in medical imaging GE, jumped on board,
quickly establishing a broad base in this segment with a wide range of
HCUs. The original devices offered portability although image quality
was compromised. The latest HCUs are now poised to capture a large
share of the ultrasound market across the globe. As the leaders in HCU,
GE and Sonosite, expand their range and offer greater functionality and
enhanced performance at a lower cost, other imaging giants such as
Philips, Siemens and Toshiba are launching new products to tap into
this market, in addition to well-established niche players such as
Aloka, Esaote, Zonare, etc.
Medical Ultrasound Systems Markets Worldwide
Other notable trends in the ultrasound markets include the following:
-
Pricing pressures are forcing manufacturers to slash prices off
established product lines and offer high-tech compact ultrasound
devices at the expense of their own cart-based systems.
-
Greatest opportunities exist in emerging clinical applications
requiring point-of-care imaging, the expanding healthcare markets of
Asia and Latin America and in services including maintenance, repair,
upgrade, etc.
- The ultrasound contrast agents market is
negatively impacted by warnings from the US FDA and the European Agency
for the Evaluation of Medicinal Products contraindicating their use in
certain cardiology applications.
- Consolidation trend is likely to continue.
-
Specialized hardware and software for cardiology, breast ultrasound,
emerging clinical applications and 3D/ 4D imaging will be in high
demand.
Growth in the ultrasound market will be
driven by demand for hand-carried ultrasound devices and penetration of
emerging geographic and clinical markets. Overall growth in medical
imaging will also continue due to growing populations of elderly people
worldwide, with a concurrent rise in chronic disease rates, which
presents new opportunities for growth and expansion. Main restraints in
the ultrasound market include the sluggish economy in many countries,
reimbursement restrictions and competition from MRI and CT.
This new report published by Marketstrat Inc. discusses these and other
trends in the Medical Ultrasound market worldwide, with market
estimates and forecasts for the 2008-2016 period. Higher growth rates
towards the end of this period are projected as economic conditions
stabilize leading to sizeable increases in healthcare expenditures.
The report discusses the contribution of technological innovation in
driving the ultrasound market forward, with hand-carried ultrasound
(HCU) systems being the most significant. After Sonosite Inc. first
introduced hand-carried ultrasound in 1999, the global leader in
medical imaging GE, jumped on board, quickly establishing a broad base
in the compact and hand-carried device segment with a wide range of
HCUs. The original devices were focused on providing portability,
although image quality was compromised. The latest HCUs are now poised
to capture a large share of the ultrasound market across the globe. As
the leaders in HCU, GE and Sonosite expand their range and offer
greater functionality and improved performance at a lower cost, other
imaging giants such as Philips, Siemens and Toshiba are launching new
products to tap into this market, in addition to well-established niche
players such as Aloka, Esaote, Zonare, etc.
Medical Ultrasound Systems Markets Worldwide
In an era where
medical imaging markets are battling reduced capital expenditures in
the traditionally safe markets such as the US, Europe and Japan, HCUs
and convertible compact cart-based ultrasound offer new opportunities
both in these regions and in the emerging healthcare markets of Asia
and Latin America. These latter regions will continue to see healthcare
facility expansion to meet growing healthcare needs, and will be the
primary markets for new equipment purchases. A number of features make
HCUs attractive in the imaging market in all regions:
Price
- Available at a fraction of the cost of a large cart-based system,
HCUs are more accessible to providers in developing countries.
Elsewhere, the low price of HCUs are attractive to smaller physician’s
offices as well as hospitals looking to acquire more imaging devices.
Portability
- Miniaturization expands utility significantly, making the HCU an
indispensible tool. Hand-held or hand-carried devices can be used for a
wide range of point-of-care applications, from the Emergency Room (ER)
to the Operating Room(OR) to the patient’s bedside or physician’s
office.
Ease of use - Technological advances makes them easy to use by non-radiology physicians.
Improved functionality
- High-end devices feature improved resolution, color dopplers and
volumetric imaging along with specialized diagnostic software that
improves accuracy, sensitivity and specificity comparable to large
cart-based systems.
One hurdle in the advancement of
ultrasound is the issue of contrast agents. Contrast agents can greatly
enhance image quality and diagnostic efficacy. Contrast agents are
routinely used in MRI and CT. However, the ultrasound contrast agents
Optison ™, DEFINITY® and SonoVue are caught in the middle of a
controversy. The US FDA and the European Agency for the Evaluation of
Medicinal Products have recently issued warnings contraindicating use
of contrast agents for certain cardiology applications.
Medical experts are lobbying hard against these rulings, since cardiac
ultrasound was the main use prior to the regulatory warnings. Until the
regulatory hurdles are removed, the current market and growth of
ultrasound contrast agents will be impacted significantly in the next
few years. New applications such as contrast-enhanced liver and breast
ultrasound will take time to become established procedures.
The new Marketstrat report discusses current and future trends in
ultrasound market in a wide range of clinical segments. These include
traditional applications such as General Ultrasound, Cardiology, and
Women’s Health (Ob/Gyn and Breast), in addition to emerging segments
such as Emergency Medicine, Surgery, Anesthesia and Critical Care. Data
is also presented for transducers, maintenance services and contrast
agents. Geographic segments presented in this report include US,
Europe, Japan and the rest of the world (ROW).
Medical Ultrasound Systems Markets Worldwide
