Growing Acceptance of Medical Grade Displays Drives Global Growth

While the lasting effects of the economic recession will restrict the market in the short-term, growth in the world market for medical grade displays is predicted to accelerate from 2012 as the global economy improves and previously postponed hospital projects are initiated.

A new study from InMedica (Wellingborough, UK) predicts that global unit shipments of medical grade radiology, surgical, and patient monitoring displays will exceed 460,000 by 2014, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 9.5%.

Medical-grade displays differ from consumer-grade displays in a number of ways; they are designed to optimize high-resolution and high-contrast images for accurate and efficient patient diagnosis. Moreover, they ensure that images viewed in diagnosis are exactly the same as when they were first taken, despite being viewed on different workstations and at different times.” Diane Wilkinson, senior market analyst at InMedica commented, "In some countries, government legislation also states that extra certification is required for electronic equipment used in close proximity of a patient. This all adds to the cost; medical grade displays are considerably more expensive that consumer-grade displays but importantly, they are growing in acceptance globally, and in all applications.”

The increasing use of medical-grade (instead of standard consumer-grade) displays in clinical-review settings and in departments outside of traditional radiology, the transition to color and the continuing implementation of picture archiving and communication systems (PACS) worldwide is driving growth in the radiology market segment. Greatest percentage growth is forecast for the surgical displays market, fuelled by the trend to high definition (HD)TV in endoscopy and the need to increase visualization in operating rooms.

The greatest hurdles to growth in this market are cost and legislation. "While strong market growth is forecast for developing global regions due to the improving nature of their healthcare systems, a much higher proportion of consumer-grade displays are used in medical applications here. The high price of medical-grade displays and the lack of specific legislation on their use in these regions prevent greater adoption,” explained Mr. Wilkinson.

InMedica is the medical research division of IMS Research, a specialist supplier of market research and consultancy services on a wide range of global electronics markets. InMedica regularly publishes research on professional point of care markets such as ultrasound and X-ray equipment, and consumer medical devices such as blood-pressure monitors and heart-rate monitors.

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