Where Is Medical Digital Imaging Systems Market Heading To?

Posted in Healthcare Software

Medical Digital Imaging Systems Market Overview             

A medical digital imaging system refers to the use of imaging devices to get a better look inside the human body, in order to make an early diagnosis of disease. X-ray systems, computed tomography scanners, ultrasound systems, MRI systems, nuclear imaging systems and mammography systems are some major modalities helping to make an early diagnosis of diseases.

There have been many technological developments in recent years, that help immensely with the medical digital imaging systems efficiency and growth. The integration of the different elements such as HL7 integration and EHR device integration is proving to be very beneficial to the overall medical digital imaging market. 

Because through these integrations, medical images can be integrated into the hospital’s EHR system and can be viewed by all the healthcare providers involved. Hence, the overall efficiency of using medical imaging systems is improved.Today many hospitals are opting for the latest HL7 integrated EMRs and EHRs to increase profits. For example, hospitals which use Epic software’s show incredible growth and efficiency. 

A patient’s X-ray and imaging tests, that are a part of the 10 components of medical records in a hospital, can be shared among all the healthcare providers through HL7 messages and that, in turn, improve the overall quality of patient care. 

The medical digital imaging market has been through tremendous changes over the years, exhibiting some exponential growth rates. The main reason for this growth is the increased demand for early disease diagnosis. Physicians are more reliant than ever on imaging systems for the better and early diagnosis of their diseases, and the more reliant they are, the more the market flourishes.

According to a research, the market size of the global medical digital imaging systems is predicted to extend up to $28 billion by 2026, with a growth rate of 10.4% CAGR during the projected time. With all the technological advancements in the imaging systems, and with a rising need for early disease diagnosis, the use of imaging systems is surely increasing day by day. 

Therefore, there is an increased demand for more medical imaging products and hence more production.Apart from providing early disease diagnosis, these medical imaging systems also improve the cost of overall patient care, and also improve the operational efficiency of hospitals. For instance, many hospitals use  HL7 & FHIR integrated electronic medical records and digital imaging systems to increase their revenues.

There is no doubt that all the advancements and innovations in the healthcare industry are proving to be very effective, but there is also a downside to them: they are costly. For example, many telemedicine software cost too much, which make their integration with medical imaging systems a bit difficult. But these high costs do not deter the usage of medical imaging systems, because they are in high demand. 

All these competent imaging systems, favorable government initiatives and increased demand for early disease diagnosis favour the medical digital imaging market growth. Only the high costs for most of the medical imaging systems can prove to be a deterrent for the market growth to a certain level.

Medical Digital Imaging Systems Market Size

The medical imaging market continues to grow its wings under the heavy influence of the latest tech and the high demand for these imaging systems by physicians and patients likewise. Research shows that in 2019, the size of the medical digital imaging systems market was $33.69 billion, which is forecasted to increase up to $43.33 billion by 2027, with a CAGR of 5.1% during the projection period. 

With the rising number of chronic diseases, the need for early disease diagnosis is also rising. According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly 60% of adults in the USA suffer from one chronic disease and almost 40% have two or more chronic conditions. Due to this rapid need for early diagnosis, the dependence on medical digital imaging is also increasing day by day.

The chances of developing a disease also increase with age. So, the increasing number of elderly patients, with acute and chronic diseases such as cancer and cardiovascular diseases, causes the increased use of medical imaging diagnostic systems.  Moreover, many regional and federal governments are emphasizing the use of these imaging diagnosis procedures, for the reduced healthcare costs and the overall betterment of patient healthcare. So, more patients are going through MRI, CT and X-ray scans throughout the world.

All these factors are causing an increased dependency on medical imaging systems, and therefore, an increase in the size of the medical digital imaging systems market.

Medical Digital Imaging Systems Market Growth And Trends

The growth of the medical digital imaging systems market depends on various factors. Some of these major factors are as follows:

• A rise in the early disease diagnosis.
• An increased capacity of clinical applications.
• A quickly growing geriatric population, followed by an increased number of related diseases.
• Technological developments in the diagnostic imaging industry.
•  Increased investments and funds by the government and private organizations.

All these factors have contributed equally to the incessant medical imaging systems market growth over time, but some recent events like Covid-19 have also caused an uphill market growth.

During the pandemic, the number of X-ray and CT scans has been exceedingly high due to the effectiveness of chest X-rays in the diagnosis of Covid-19. Hence, many health care compliance consulting companies have been focusing on increasing the production of these modalities. 

There have also been some negative effects brought by Covid-19, largely due to the decline in the number of patients who visit the hospitals. Furthermore, the new guidelines for radiology and ultrasounds to reduce the Covid-19 spread causes a decrease in the usage of these procedures. But these negative effects are more of a temporary nature, if anything the spread of Covid-19 only emphasises the usage of the medical imaging system more. Hence, the need to turn to medical imaging diagnosis has only increased more.

The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in medical imaging systems is also facilitating the medical imaging market growth. These days many medical software development companies, who have HIPAA compliance for software development are contributing to the task of developing such medical imaging products. 

With the help of the best health care mobile app development companies, many telemedicine software developments are underway. So, all these combined efforts are contributing to the end result of positive market growth. Moreover, with the integration of many healthcare applications and an increasing number of AI-aided medical imaging systems, the production of these systems is bound to rise and so does the market growth.

The medical imaging diagnostic market can be divided into six major segments: 

1. X-ray imaging
2. CT scanners
3. MRI systems
4. Nuclear imaging systems
5. Ultrasound imaging systems 
6. Mammography systems

Out of these six, the CT scan segment has contributed the highest towards the global medical diagnostic imaging 2020. 

This high growth rate indicates that hospitals are adopting more CT scanners, and also more patients are demanding early disease diagnosis. Also, the rise of Covid-19 and the need for its early diagnosis through chest CT scans has also contributed to this market growth.

In 2020, diagnostic applications contributed the largest share of the market. Cardiology under CT scanners, brain and neurological MRI under MRI systems, radiology under ultrasound systems, oncology under nuclear imaging systems have the biggest shares. So, imaging systems with general radiography applications are estimated to be a rapidly growing market in the forecasted time period. 

The high demand for early diagnosis for chronic diseases in developing countries such as India and China is also expected to contribute towards the forecasted market growth. The governments of countries like the U.S., India, the U.K. and Canada are also taking initiatives in order to stimulate market growth. 

Such as: reducing the duties on imported devices, supporting favourable procedures, educating the physicians and general population on more effective usage of medical imaging systems are a few such initiatives. Although, the high costs of these medical digital imaging systems and high radiation risks are some factors looming over the market growth during the forecasted period.

Regional Market Growth

North America 

In 2019, the size of the medical digital imaging systems market of North America was 8.67 billion.  In 2020 this region shared the largest stake in the medical digital imaging market growth. 

The main reason for this high growth rate is; the increasing geriatric population and related diseases, easy accessibility to imaging systems, and high adoption of technological advancements by hospitals (due to the considerable per capita healthcare budget by the US government).

Europe 

Europe holds the place of second-largest medical imaging systems market. Due to the presence of high-quality health care facilities, the demand for early disease diagnosis is also increasing, specifically among the elder generation. Also, the increasing number of different chronic diseases such as cardiovascular and neurological disorders is also stimulating the market growth.

Asia Pacific 

Asia Pacific region is anticipated to grow with the highest CAGR rates during the forecasted period. Due to a large number of undiagnosed patients, favourable government policies, and faster adaptation of technology, the digital imaging systems market is expected to grow exponentially in the region. 

LAMEA 

The market growth is expected to be comparatively lower in this region. The regions of the Middle East and Africa are expected to show the least growth, mainly due to the lack of awareness and insufficient access and availability of healthcare resources. 

Medical Digital Imaging Systems Market Opportunities

An increasing number of inventions in medical imaging systems provide an exceptional scope of opportunities for market growth. The market always focuses on the deliverance of the best imaging products to patients and physicians. Most of the prominent partners in the medical digital imaging market are shifting their focus towards value-based radiology and imaging, due to the several innovations made in MRI, ultrasound, mammography, 3D imaging and nuclear imaging. There are certain factors and imaging modalities contributing towards the market growth more than the others, and so they provide more opportunities for further growth too. Some of these factors are discussed below.

• Nuclear Imaging:

The nuclear imaging modality alone was responsible for $3.5 billion of market growth in 2020. This imaging involves the ingestion of certain radioactive material by the patient, just before the scanning. Then with the help of a camera physicians can locate the area of radioactive material and make a better-informed decision. Nuclear imaging scans are particularly useful for the diagnosis of cancer, gall bladder disease, thyroid disease and also heart disease.

• Increased demand in Hospitals:

The more the hospitals have the demand for medical digital imaging systems, the more the industry will have positive growth rates. The hospitals’ segment of medical imaging systems is estimated to exhibit a growth rate of 5% through 2027. Due to the increased demand for pre-diagnosis for most diseases, hospitals are relying on medical imaging modalities such as MRI and CT scans heavily. 

Also, the large share of this segment’s growth can be attributed to the tendency of hospitals towards the automation and digitalization of the radiology patient workflow and more usage of invasive medical diagnostic systems to improve the patient’s healthcare.

• Continuous development of new Products: 

Continuous modernization in the medical digital imaging market is also a reason for perpetual market growth. 

With the growing need for more advanced medical imaging systems, many companies are continuously looking to improve their products, Hence, these innovations also provide great market growth opportunities. According to GLOBOCAN 2020 data, approximately over 50% of global cancer patients belong to developing countries. 

The rising cases of chronic disease, cancer, neurological disorders and subsequently rising death rates demand better diagnostic systems. These rising numbers show the eminent need for medical digital diagnostic systems in these countries. Thus, all the developing countries like India, China, Turkey, Russia, South Korea, and Brazil provide great market opportunities for all the key players of medical digital imaging systems.

Although higher cost rates of the medical imaging systems can cause hindrance in some regions, countries with large populations like China and India compensate with their numbers and provide sustainable market growth opportunities. Moreover, many key players of the medical imaging market are adopting different strategies to cement their foothold in these developed countries.

For example, Siemens Healthineers mentioned China as their biggest market, with numerous growth opportunities. Also, in 2019, Siemens Healthineers opened a manufacturing unit in India with two production lines to help with the sustainability of their business in the region.

Medical Digital Imaging Systems Market Development

The medical digital imaging systems market has exhibited some great developments over the years. The constant technological advances have helped immensely in the market expansion. Furthermore, the growing interest of the developing countries in opting for more advanced and better medical imaging systems have also played a part.

Hence, all the key parties are always looking for ways to enhance the performance of their already existing medical imaging systems, and also, create new products to satisfy the growing needs of medical digital imaging systems of the world.

Some of the most recent developments in the medical digital imaging systems are as follows:

• In July 2020, FUJIFILM Sonosite started the Sonosite PX ultrasound system. Sonosite PX has the most developed imaging clarity in Sonosite POCUS ultrasound systems. These improved systems are bound to improve the medical imaging company’s profit.
• In some of the most recent developments, Canon Medical System Corporation declared the launch of their updated Aplio i-series for ultrasound series, in June 2021. These remodelled versions of ultrasound technology will increase the company’s medical imaging system product sales.
• Some partnership programs also contribute to the market development, such as for the distribution of Ziehm Vision RFD C-arm, Carestream declared their partnership with Ziehm imaging in April 2021. This collaboration will stimulate an increase in the company’s revenue.

Who Are The Leading Players In The Medical Digital Imaging Systems’ Market?

The most prominent players in the medical digital imaging systems market are as follows:

• Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd
• Siemens AG
• Medtronic PLC
• Koninklijke Philips N.V
• Canon, Inc.
• General Electric (GE) Co.
• Esaote SpA
• Shimadzu Corporation 
• Hologic, Inc.
• Hitachi Ltd

The top three are the ones contributing the most towards the growth of the medical digital imaging systems market by providing the best versions of the medical imaging systems, while the later participants are providing more major innovations in the market. In March 2019, a new imaging systems range was introduced by Royal Philips. These imaging systems deliver more than one benefit, including improved patient care and less cost of delivery. In December 2019, Samsung launched RS85 Prestige, which is an upgraded ultrasound system. This advanced system features Crystal Architecture, which gives crystal clear medical images. This ultrasound system also includes an MV-Flow feature, which gives a more comprehensive picture of the blood flow. In August 2020, Canon Medical Systems launched the Soltus 500 Mobile Digital X-ray. These systems improve the overall workflow and productivity.

Some of these companies provide best examples of excellent customer service in healthcare, but all of these companies are incessantly working and contributing to the advancement of the medical digital imaging systems market growth.

Conclusion

All things considered, it is safe to say that the medical digital imaging systems market has a tremendous potential to grow, and it’s been already shown in the projections made for the market growth for the upcoming years. To reduce the increasing number of acute and chronic diseases, the dependency on medical imaging systems is essential. So, all the policies that favour the growth of the medical digital imaging systems market should be encouraged at all costs.

FAQs:

Medical digital imaging systems market USA

USA spends twice as much on health care as any other high-income country, and out of this almost 10% ($100 billion) is spent on medical imaging systems. These high numbers account for the fact that North America share the biggest part in medical digital imaging systems market growth of 2020. The region also provides many growth opportunities for the market in the forecasted time period.

What would be the size of the medical digital imaging systems market by 2026?

According to a research report, the medical digital imaging systems market size is projected to reach $28 billion by 2026, with a growth rate of 10.4% CAGR during the forecasted duration.

Which region dominated the medical digital imaging systems market in 2019?

North American region dominated the market in 2019 and is also expected to dominate continuously due to the hyper-awareness of these medical imaging systems among the physicians, hospitals and general population.

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