Global MRI Equipment Market to Reach US$5.5 Billion by 2010

Since the introduction of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), the technology has become an ever-present diagnostic tool for better understanding of diseases. A trade-off between patient-comfort designs and enhanced diagnostic information highlights the trend in modern MRI equipment research.

In this highly sophisticated industry, innovation, and service quality are the key to success. Image quality remains the impulse for equipment selection, according to a recent market report. Field strength is a standard component of image quality as it adds to extended application range, signal-to-noise ratio, and short examination times. Use of dedicated MRI systems is expected to witness significant growth due to high imaging quality and cost-effectiveness.

Development of 3T scanners has provided the MRI industry an edge over 1.5T scanners, much touted as the industry's "Gold Standard.” 3T MRI systems are a success story in the MRI market today. Lower examination costs complemented by improved image quality and lesser scan times highlight the advantages of 3T scanners.

The United States represents the largest market in both dollar and unit terms. The MRI equipment market in the United States is estimated at US$1.9 billion for 2008, as stated in a recent report published by Global Industry Analysts, Inc. (GIA; San Jose, CA, USA), a market research company. The very high-field MRI system market in the United States is projected to near $1 billion by the year 2010. Very high-field systems also represent the fastest growing segment, as hospitals and clinics upgrade old equipment with state-of-the-art systems.

Japan represents the second largest market for MRI equipment. The country holds the distinction of featuring the highest MRI scanners per million population. The closed MRI system market in Japan represents the largest product category, accounting for an estimated market share of 84% (in value terms) for 2008. The MRI industry is in its infancy in most regions of Asia-Pacific, and countries such as India, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, South Korea, and China offering enormous potential for growth. The Asia-Pacific region is projected to register a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.6% over the period, 2005-2010. The open MRI system market in the Asia-Pacific is estimated at $81 million for 2008.

GE Healthcare (Chalfont St, Giles, UK), Siemens Healthcare (Erlangen, Germany), and Philips Medical Systems (Best, The Netherlands) dominate the global MRI equipment market.

Global Industry Analysts is a market research publisher. The company also offers a range of over 60,000 smaller research products including company reports, market trend reports, and industry reports encompassing all major industries worldwide.


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